Memory of Tomorrow
by Ilsia
Summary: Harry was always a sickly child, but it all came crashing down with one word: Leukemia. Trapped inside a hospital since his 14th birthday, one night and one charm would change it all... AU, future slash.
1. Prologue

**AN**: This has now been confirmed a HPxLOTR crossover. The first chapter here is a sort of prologue and does not yet have anything to do with the LOTR -verse, so hopefully you'll continue to read to the next chapter.

**Summary**: Harry was always a sickly child, but it all came crashing down with one word: Leukemia. Trapped inside a hospital since his 14th birthday, one night and one charm would change it all...

**Warnings**: AU, Mature content and Slash in the future. Prologue-ish.

**Disclaimer**: If I owned it, Harry would be with Luna and Ginny choked on popcorn in her first year.

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**Memory of Tomorrow  
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It is a firm belief of mine that hospital walls are always white because it's the easiest colour to obtain and paint over when "accidents" happen. I've only ever seen the insides of two hospitals in my life, but I've spent so much time in them that I feel like I've lived through several lifetimes of endless white walls. It feels like I've seen the insides of countless hospitals, all filled with the colour white, oppressive atmosphere and the biting smell of disinfectant.

In the very beginning I still had hope. I didn't know what giving up was, then. I had no idea what death really felt like. When they brought me to the hospital on my thirteenth birthday, I thought it'd be just more of the usual, nothing to worry about. I had always been a sickly child with poor constitution, getting ill easily and spending a lot of my time in bed rest, reading books or listening to my mother's voice as she read them to me. But this time it was different.

When the healer heard of my symptoms, he insisted on various tests, including several tubes filled with my blood. While waiting for the results, I spent the time counting the familiar cracks in the stone walls. I was on the one thousand and one hundred thirty fifth crack, shaped slightly like the tree in our home yard when the healer came back, looking grim.

"Leukemia", he said.

I didn't yet understand, then, what kind of a disease it was. I thought I'd get over it in a few weeks, just like the usual flu or fever. Reality is a cruel thing. I did get to go home for a while, but it became clear soon that you didn't get over leukemia in a few weeks. Not even a few months. It could take years, decades. There was no magical cure for leukemia. When I was fourteen, I was moved indefinitely to St. Mungo's. The medication wasn't working as it was supposed to, they said. More tests were done, including a painful extraction of a piece from my spinal marrow. The thing hurt more than the actual disease or the bruises I had. They said they'd have to take more of the pieces with time.

While going through the endless flow of new test results and medication, I had a lot of time to spend doing nothing. I turned to books in my quest for conquering the boredom. When looking through a thesaurus, I found the definition of my disease. The book called it a blood cancer - my illness finally had a name I could understand, instead of some foreign medical term that meant nothing. The book told me my white blood cells had gotten out of hand and my red blood cells were dying out. I remembered my doctor calling the disease ALL - "acute lymphoblastic leukemia", the thesaurus explained. It was a fast progressing form of leukemia that lead to death unless discovered early enough.

Strange as it was, knowing what my disease was and what it caused didn't make me feel nervous or scared. I was still blind to reality - It was _me_, how could _I_ die? I had so much left to see, so much left to do and experience - the World was here for me, I wasn't here for it. If I disappeared, how could the World go on existing?

With the pass of time and continuously changing healers, I slowly started to understand. Staring at the same white wall and the same small cracks in it, I had plenty of time for thinking. The World had been here before I was born. It could go on without me. In my lifetime, there hadn't been a moment without the World, but in the life span of the World my miserable existence - whether 20 or 100 years - was the blink of a blink of an eye.

At times I had to spend weeks in the isolation ward when my immunity system wasn't working well enough. The stronger and stronger medicine brought stronger and stronger side effects. After only two months since the beginning of the treatments, long strands of my hair began to fall out. When I realized there would be no end to it, and the bald spots would just grow bigger, I gave in and let the nurses shave my head. I took to wearing a hat to cover the loss of my long hair. It had been my pride and a bond between my mother and I. She often spent several minutes each night combing my hair for me, telling me stories of her day in her soft voice. All that was now gone.

At times I felt so cold I shivered from the temperature only I seemed to notice, at others I was so hot I feared I'd sweat off my skin. I had good days and bad ones. Sometimes I could hardly stay awake but couldn't sleep for the intense feeling off illness. Sometimes I felt so good I wanted nothing more than to go out for a walk and climb some trees.

For two long years I hadn't stepped outside the hospital. When I was well enough, the nurses or my brother would take me to the roof to enjoy some fresh air and feel the wind. Two long years I had spent, watching the change of the seasons through my window, desperately clinging to the pieces of conversation I could hear through the crack of the window on those days I was allowed to keep it open. Two years spent dreaming of the world outside, dreams that left me with nothing but despair and an overpowering feeling of bitter derision. Most of the time I just wanted to give up, give in. The actual treatment was worse than the disease - the rare days when I didn't have to take my medication, I felt better than the best of the days during my treatment. I often thought the treatments would kill me before the actual illness did.

My mother and siblings, a younger brother and sister, came to see me everyday. My father had time for visiting roughly once a month. My mother told me father was busy trying to make enough money for my treatments every time she came. I wasn't sure who she was trying to convince more, me or herself. True, my care was expensive, but my father made enough to support the whole Ministry, let alone the treatments of one sick child.

My friends from Hogwarts used to visit often in the beginning, but their visits got less and less frequent as time passed and I wasn't released. In the last few months, only my old best friend, Hermione came to see me spontaneously, sometimes once a week, at others once a month. Her visits were nice but I couldn't help feeling self conscious. The heavy air made her visitations short and uncomfortable, and I couldn't help but feel envious of how healthy and happy she seemed. I was jealous, and I hated myself for it.

The day it all began, I was sitting and watching the wind play with the leaves from one of the big maple trees at the front yard of the hospital, as usual. It was winter, but the weather had been surprisingly calm this year, and the leaves were still slowly falling out as the air got colder and crisper. The air inside the hospital, however, was stale as always. I was feeling oddly disconnected. The calendar told me it was my mother's birthday and, consequently, the Christmas Day. The hospital had held its annual Christmas celebration yesterday, and I had received some painting supplies and a sketchbook from my family. One of the nurses - I still couldn't remember her name - had given me a bar of chocolate with the advice of eating it slowly and in parts, when I felt up for it. I didn't have much of an appetite these days, but I thanked her nevertheless. She was quite nice and I had gotten used to her. Unlike the other nurses, she didn't see the need for endless chatter or nervous twittering, which made for a comfortable atmosphere. I had heard some nurses talking about me in the break room, complaining how I unsettled them. Apparently I was too quiet. They thought I appeared emotionless and cold, and had trouble acting cheerful in my presence. And even so, every nurse that entered my room was always full of cheer and goodwill of the holier-than-thou kind. It made me feel disgusted.

The ways to spend time were limited when contained in a small hospital. I mostly sat and read, or sketched something in my sketchbook. It was filled with a thousand views of the same scenery visible from my window, or that of my room in the isolation ward. Since my medication was lighter and my immunity system was working better again, I was allowed to reside in the normal part of the hospital. The light knock came when I was finishing the sketch of an imaginary flower pot on the window sill.

"How are you feeling today?" asked my mother upon entering the room. She was followed by my younger brother Charlus, with a strange back-bag in the form of my sister Lilyanne, hanging from his neck like a monkey. I smiled when Charlus grinned at me. Lilyanne just pulled his ear as a sign to get down, and was sitting in my lap almost before her feet touched the floor. Lately there had been more bad days than good, but I was feeling remarkably well on that day and told my mother as much.

"Hermione dropped by earlier and wished us a merry Christmas. She also brought a book I've been wanting to read for a long while. Did you know the nurses have been planning a New Year's party? We can go to the roof to see the fireworks", I told my mother. That was more words than I had spoken the whole day. I felt like blowing a raspberry at an imaginary nurse. See, I can speak when I want to. And it's not like I felt the need to cheer them up any more than they were already acting.

"Is that so? How nice", mother said as she sat down on the edge of my bed since Charlus had stolen the only chair in the room. I turned to him, with Lilyanne still in my lap, and directed my next question to him.

"You went to that trip to Durmstrang with the team, right? How was it?"

Charlus was into sports and part of Ravenclaw's Quidditch team. The group often travelled around other magical schools for matches and tournaments (apparently in pursuit of intellectual comprehension over the borders), and they had even been to watch official international matches once or twice.

"Snowy, unlike here", Charlus stated. It was true - Scotland had enjoyed a completely bare, snowless Christmas. "I brought you a souvenir."

Charlus dug around his pockets and produced a charm, probably bought from one of the few odd shrines near Durmstrang. I smiled and thanked him, carefully placing the charm between the pages of my sketchbook. Lilyanne puckered her mouth in concentration and dug into her backpack for something, finally letting out an excited cry of success as she pulled out a card. Offering it to me, she beamed showing a hole where a tooth had recently fallen off.

"I brought you a sou-vee-neer too, from school!" she proclaimed proudly. The card was self drawn, on purple cardboard. It was a simple picture of a bright sun and some flowers - not quite in the season, but rather well done for an 8 year old girl.

"It's great", I told her and mussed up her short, red hair fondly. I felt a strange feeling squeezing me uncomfortably, like a too tight shirt. I identified it as longing, and thought of my now gone black, long hair, which only remained in the form of a clump of wisps bound together with an elastic band in the second drawer of the standard hospital desk.

"Father will be home soon so we have to go now", mother announced after performing a quick Tempus charm. She looked at me apologetically. "He said he'd be here tomorrow to see you and he's going to bring you something, so look forward to that, okay, Harry?"

I settled for nodding, uncertain whether to feel happy or uncomfortable. The time spent with my father was always stiff and formal. I often felt I was more of an obligation or duty than a son to him. I knew he was disappointed in me for getting sick with something I couldn't just get over in a few days. I was probably a disappointment already, with my bad constitution so unlike normal, rash boys, before I even got ill.

Mother waved her hand quickly as my family left through the door. I glanced at the clock on the opposite wall, just watching the third hand ticking from line to line for a while. I felt like it was ticking away the seconds of my life and the memories of my past, without mercy or pausing to see if I could keep up. I turned to stare outside.

Ten minutes. The time my family could spend with me on Christmas Day. I was a burden to my relations, an unnecessary reminder of worry and troubled times. I felt like a rock shackled to their ankles, holding them back from living a real life. They didn't deserve it.

Lying down, I tried to catch the ever so elusive sleep that had been evading me lately. When I closed my eyes, I thought I saw something white flashing behind the window - pure, glowing snowflakes. I wondered if I was just imagining them. I felt like I was seeing a memory of a future, where snow was falling behind the window and somebody else was lying in the bed before it. The heavy tendrils of sleep whispered against the edges of my mind and I felt like I was lying inside cold ground instead of my warm bed, trapped inside a narrow, suffocating coffin while someone else was staring into the heavy snowfall where I was supposed to be, unaware and uncaring. The soil was rising around me lightly, like a blanket of feathers, covering me with forgiveness and comfort. I felt peace unlike anything I had ever imagined during those years of pain and uncertainty -

and opened my eyes.

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**AN**: I have no idea when Lily's birthday is in the canon, but I don't really care - it's not all that important.

Anyways, this is no longer a oneshot. I've decided to continue it, and it will be a Slash crossover - and I mean heavy slash, the M kind. It'll cross with Lord of The Rings (I love the book's plot. The writing style, not so much), but I'm not yet sure of the pairing, so I'm open to suggestions there.

I hope the inspiration will continue. The next chapter deviates from the first person perspective used in this Prologueish chapter.

Also, I haven't the slightest whether magical hospitals have nurses or not. In this fic they do~

From now on, I'll strive to make the chapters around 5k words long.

Like always, English isn't my first language, and I don't have a beta. If you spot mistakes, please let me know. And please do leave a review.


	2. Chapter 1

**AN**: So, I've been pondering over this ficlet for a while, considering x-overs like Avatar, X-men, Rurouni Kenshin and several others - but in the end I decided on the good ole Lord of the Rings, mostly because I got several ideas when thinking of that possibility. Not sure of the pairing yet, as it will take quite a while to come into the picture, but it will be slash for Harry.

**Summary**: Harry was always a sickly child, but it all came crashing down with one word: Leukemia. Trapped inside a hospital since his 14th birthday, one night and one charm would change it all...

**Warnings**: AU, Harry's run-off mouth, Future Slash and (far-off future) Mature content.

**Disclaimer**: As mentioned before, Ginny choked on popcorn. What, she didn't? What does that tell you about my HP ownership, then. Oh, and she choked on popcorn in LOTR universe, too.

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**Memory of Tomorrow - Chapter 1**

The first thing he became aware of was the strange feeling of coolness in his body, as if he had been dead for a while, or perhaps submerged in an ice cold bath. The light from an unknown source was painting the backs of his eyelids bright red, making him dread actually opening them. There was a strange sense of peace and quiet around him, only disturbed by the sounds of nature - birds singing, various unidentifiable bugs doing the sounds they do and the wind rustling the greenery. He didn't know what he was lying against, but it felt rough and real against the bare skin of his back, almost like-

Harry's eyes shot open at the thought and for the next minute or two, he could only stare, eyes wide and mouth hanging open in a manner that would've made his mother snap at him to stop gathering flies. His mother wasn't here though, and he had no idea where 'here' even was so that was a moot point. 'Here' was beautiful. Harry didn't think there were any forests like this in Scotland, or in England for that matter. Perhaps not even on Earth in whole, though he wouldn't really know since he had never been abroad before. His illness had made sure of that quite early on. The trees spreading around him were freaking _huge_, looming over him like the acromantula of Forbidden Forest loomed over their prey. He'd know, he'd met them once and it wasn't the pleasant would-you-like-some-tea-kind of an encounter either. Thank heavens for Hagrid.

His intent perusal of the trees was cut short when he noticed another fact that had escaped his notice before. He was naked. And as if that wasn't enough, he had shrunk. He was quite certain his legs hadn't been that short before. Huffing in displeasure at suddenly becoming a midget, he wondered what had caused this all, leaning his back against the rough bark of the tree behind him and tilting his head back to look at it. He swiped at his long bangs with irritation, then stopped. Bangs? As in, hair? He had hair? When had _that_ happened? What in the name of Merlin was going on? He was sitting in a forest he had never seen, naked as the day he was born, shrunk and with hair that had suddenly appeared from nowhere.

Staring at the tree stretching above him, he thought it looked rather pitiful compared to the rest of the trees in the small clearing. Unlike the other, healthy pine and fir trees, this one was black and shriveled, looking dead to the world. It was almost as if it had been scorched by an intense fire that left the surroundings untouched. Quite mysterious. But not the important point right now. Right, hair. And shrinking. Was he kidnapped? Did someone feed him hair growth potion or something? But why? Taking him from the hospital was practically the same as killing him, since even on his best days his immune system just wasn't up to facing the world outside. Come to think of it, he was feeling remarkably good, the coldness of his body aside. In fact, if he didn't know any better, he'd say he wasn't ill at all. He didn't think he had ever felt this... healthy and alive.

Harry reached up to adjust his glasses from a force of habit, only to find he wasn't wearing any when he poked himself in the nose. He was glad no one was around to see him. He bet he looked right a sight, naked and poking his face while leaning against a mysteriously dead tree in the middle of an abandoned forest.

"Okay, focus Harry. You can figure this out", he muttered to himself, trying to muster some energy and wondering why he wasn't panicking more. Better think back and try to remember what happened last. Mother, Lilyanne and Charlus had visited him at the hospital and given him some souvenirs. They had left and he had stared at the clock and probably fallen asleep at some point. And... that was pretty much it. Had he died? Was this some weird version of Heaven reserved for sick kids who spent a long time in isolation? Shouldn't they think that after being alone so long, you might prefer company? Or was this Hell, instead? It sure was pretty if it was.

Alright, so this thinking thing wasn't working out at all. He couldn't really come to any conclusions with no facts to go on. At least, not any accurate conclusions - he was all for wild guesses and conspiracy theories. Perhaps he ought to get up and look around? While being found skipping along naked in a forest wasn't on the top of his list of things to do, it beat lying here and dying of exposure or starvation. Best find a reflective surface first, since he really wanted to know if anything else besides the hair and his size had changed. And he really wanted to know why he wasn't running around in circles and screaming, too. This kind of calm acceptance was just unnatural.

The desized boy slowly got up, testing his feet and finding them to be working. That was one problem down. And what was that? Something had fallen from his hair as he moved, something small and rather familiar... his charm! It was the same charm Charlus had given him as a souvenir from his trip to Durmstrang. What was it doing here, of all things? He could've used his clothes, his wand, even his stupid hospital gown - but no, he gets a bloody charm. Was this the World's way of telling him something? Well, the World could damn well keep its opinions to itself. Disgruntled, he picked up the wooden little block and pondered on what to do with it. Eyeing the rugged string tied to the hole in it he wondered if he could just...

Yep, this works okay, he nodded while looking over his handwork. He had somehow, clumsily, managed to tie the end of the string, shortening it just enough so it wouldn't slip off from his wrist. The block of wood was a comforting weight against the palm of his hand. He nodded again and then looked around. Hmm, now which direction to go... Not that he had any idea where they were. He decided that the way he was facing - away from the weird, black tree - was South and set forward, trying to avoid stepping on any big twigs or pine cones. Damn, but walking barefoot in a forest was more painful than it looked.

"Wonder if I'm in Canada", he mused aloud while he walked. He had read somewhere that Canada had a lot of forests. He wondered if he should be worried about running into a bear or something. Didn't Canada have a lot of bears? He was quite sure someone in the family had been mauled by one when they visited the place. Was it uncle Frank? Frank Longbottom wasn't really that closely related to the Potters, but he visited often enough that all three children called him "uncle". Now that Harry thought of it, it must've been uncle Frank, since he was the only one who'd been to America before. And he did have an impressive set of scars on his body.

Harry paused when a distant sound reached his ears and felt like crowing in delight. Water! Sure, it sounded like it was a river or something so perhaps not the best thing to use as a mirror, but it'd do. He didn't need an all that clear image, anyways. It's not like he was vain. He just wanted to make sure he still had a nose and that his eyes hadn't moved to his chin or something. Sure, touching his face would've made sure of that - and already had - but better safe than sorry, right?

He used the sound as his compass while navigating around the trees towards his beacon of light. Literally at that, since the stream he eventually came upon reflected the light almost painfully bright towards him, forcing him to lift his arm to shield his eyes. He scoffed at the sky before striding to the edge of the water, kneeling down with his hair pooling around him. Damn, but his hair was long, even longer than his old hair had been before he shaved it off.

He inspected the reflection looking back at him curiously. His eyes were still green, perhaps a bit brighter and of a lighter shade than before, though that could've been just the sunlight. His black hair had a distinct green tint that it hadn't had before and naturally he looked more like an eight year old than his real 16 years. His facial bones were a bit more fine and aristocratic than he remembered, but he rather liked the look. What really threw him, however, was the feature that blatantly marked him as being something inhuman - perhaps a creature of some sort. His ears were pointed. Pointed. As in, pointy and long and very much not normal.

Harry spent a long while staring at his reflection and poking at his new, elongated features, wanting nothing more than to find a good, solid rock to bash his head against. So, he was stranded in the middle of a forest, naked and a creature. He wondered what kind of creature he was. Could he still use magic? Not that he could do much without his wand, which was probably still lying under his pillow at the hospital. What creatures did he know that had pointed ears? Hmm... Harry paused in thought. Centaurs might've pointed ears, but he wasn't too sure. Since he wasn't half horse it didn't matter anyway. Doxies did, as did most ghouls... Goblins, too. Was he some weird new form of a goblin? Or perhaps a house elf? Kreacher had pointy ears. Sighing, he broke the reflection by scooping up some water and splashing his face with it. He didn't dare drink from the stream in case the water wasn't pure and he'd end up getting food poisoning or something on top of everything.

The boy sat back in thought, unfolding his legs and dangling them in the stream. The cold water felt like heaven against the torn soles of his feet after the first sting passed. He had a few options, he realized. He could stay near the water and use it as a supply - who knew when he'd run across more, and by some point he'd surely stop caring whether it was pure or not. He couldn't survive without liquids. Or he could continue walking and risk going in circles, hoping to find some sign of humanity - err, creaturity, somewhere. There were problems with both choices. If he stayed, he could end up dying of starvation, stuck near the river and too weak to go further without anyone ever discovering him. If he continued walking, he could go on or in circles without finding anyone, possibly falling victim to dehydration or exhaustion. He didn't really like either option. Hell, he didn't even know if there _was_ any life in this place to begin with!

In the end, his wish to find something resembling human in this new place made his decision. Harry thought he'd go mad fast if he stayed still and didn't walk. He'd start talking to himself, no doubt - not that he didn't already, but maybe he'd start answering too. Like some weird case of MPD.

"Over the river and through the woods", he hummed absently as he walked, lamenting the fate of his feet with each step. Didn't Canada get a lot of snow? He was pretty sure uncle Frank had said there was snow to his waist, there. Though he could've been exaggerating. Probably was, in fact. But still, it was Christmas. Or possibly Boxing Day, since the sun was shining quite high in the sky. Even if Scotland had a freak snowless Christmas, surely America had some white stuff by now. This forest was bare of anything resembling snow, though. And it was warm. He wasn't at all cold walking around naked - in fact, he thought he might've been hot wearing clothes. It felt more like summer than winter. Perhaps he was on another side of the Earth? Like, Australia or something? But didn't Australia have mostly sand and plains and stuff? This just kept getting weirder and weirder. He didn't think fir trees grew in Australia, either.

_'Wonder if I could make some clothes for myself'_, Harry thought, looking around himself hoping to see something other than trees, moss and rocks. There wasn't much he could use - maybe moss, if he got it to stick together and hold, somehow. Having no tools would make that a mean task to achieve.

"Trot fast my dapple gray", he sang as he clambered over a fallen tree, then fell dead still when he heard a new sound pipe up in an answer. Wolves! Two feelings fought inside him as he listened to the distant howl. He didn't know whether to feel elated that there was, in fact, life beyond birds and bugs and something so normal as wolves at that, or start screaming at the fact that there were _wolves_ here. Did wolves eat humans- er, creatures? He decided they probably did, at least if they were hungry enough. Right. No more singing. Best not to give away his position if he could avoid it. Who knew what size and how ravenous the wolves around here were. Wherever here was.

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Harry's admittedly happier than usual day took a turn for the worse as the sun began to descend behind the trees, leaving him in relative darkness. The lack of light wasn't the problem, however, as he discovered his new eyesight worked quite well in the dark as well, but rather the heavy downpour that had started a while back. This, combined with the slowly approaching night, was rapidly changing his opinion about the summery warmth of the place. He was shivering as he trudged on, tripping every now and then, trying to force his tired limbs to keep moving. At least he had the small comfort of not having any clothes sticking to his skin. His hair was doing a fair imitation, though.

Peering through his sodden bangs at the ground he tried to quell the chattering of his teeth. When his right foot failed to find proper purchase, sending him crashing to the ground once again, Harry knew he was too spent to even bother trying to get up anymore. The charm around his wrist had cut into his hand when he fell and he felt a trickle of warm blood dribbling down between his fingers. He could feel his body shivering like a frightened pygmy puff, trying to stimulate some warmth back into his frozen limbs. He knew it was a wasted effort - the cold of the night and rain would immediately seep away what little comfort he managed to find. Closing his eyes he willed himself to focus on something else. Like his family.

Would Lilyanne be reading a book on her bed right now? Was Charlus begging his father to let him practice on the quidditch pitch just a bit longer? Were they missing him already? Mother was most likely in the kitchen, making an evening meal. The Potters didn't have a house elf, mainly because Lily liked doing things the muggle way. They would eat the food together, like a happy family they were, in the warmth of the Potter manor, laughing together at some inane talk about their day.

Harry drifted asleep to the vision of Lilyanne's beaming smile and his mother's hand stroking Charlus' hair as his brother described his team's recent match, his father laughing at all the right spots.

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Harry woke as miserable as he had gone to sleep last night. The sun was peeking through the crowd of trees, prickling against his heavy eyelids like needles made from ice. The rain had stopped at some point during the night but there was no solace in the fact for Harry. He was feeling rather ill, he decided, as the first thing he did upon waking up was try and dry heave his insides out of their rightful places. Apparently his shrunken body hadn't had anything to eat since most he managed was some stomach fluids.

Grimacing at the mess he made, Harry slowly struggled upwards from his spot on the green moss. There were several cricks in his body from sleeping in a weird position and from where the rocks had dug into his skin at night, but he paid them no mind - he was feeling bad as it was so small pains here and there weren't a big deal in the overall of things. He was probably feverish, since he had to take support from a nearby tree as the scenery spun and twirled around like a drunken horse.

"I have to move", he told himself aloud, trying to will himself to believe it. His voice came out hoarse and brittle, breaking at the end. Yep, he was sick alright. Well, at least it was nothing new to him, even if he would usually be sleeping in his bed with a hot water bottle and his mother fussing at his side - or these days, at the hospital, staring at the ceiling or the window. He supposed he should be thankful he got his wish of going out, even if he was in no condition to climb trees. Not that he could climb these monstrosities anyways - they were too thick to even attempt to reach around and the lowest branches were a good three meters from the ground level.

Harry tested his balance by taking a few steps, still holding onto the tree he was leaning on. Since his balance held, he deemed himself good enough to continue walking. Now if he could just remember which direction he had come from the night before... He really didn't fancy walking another day just to find himself back where he'd started. He finally decided on a direction based on a funny shaped rock he thought he had passed before falling last night. Though the rock could've looked funny just because it kept shifting shape in his eyes, but right now he'd take whatever he got.

Walking was a lot less fun the second day if anyone wanted Harry's opinion. He was sniffling all the time, his eyelids were heavy, he felt too cold and hot in turns and his feet hurt. In fact, pretty much everything hurt. He doubted there was a spot in his body that didn't ache right now. He had to take support of the trees he passed just to keep standing and finally he just stopped to look for a good, sturdy branch of reasonable length to use as a support. He thought he must've made right an image; a young, naked boy with butt length hair, walking hunched over with a stick like an old man. Wonder if they had any mental institutes in this place?

He was too lost in his thoughts and feverish haze to notice anything wrong with his surroundings as he walked - it was his first mistake. The second was dismissing the sudden lack of bird song and bug chirps as nothing important. He was saved only by the fact he was walking with a stick - he was leaning on it heavily when it got stuck in the weird white veil hanging from the air. If he had walked without the branch, _he_ would've been the one stuck in the sticky material, not the stick. As it was, he had just enough time to realize something was wrong and notice that foreboding feeling that only comes when faced with true danger and leap to the side. There was a whooshing sound as something sharp flashed through the space where he had stood just seconds ago.

Harry rolled back to his feet but stayed kneeling, taking support from the ground with one arm and looked franctically around, searching for his attacker. It had been fast, really fast and equipped with something sharp and deadly from what he had heard. Glancing back to his stick he debated on trying to free it and use it as a weapon but abandoned the idea quickly. His best bet was getting away from here. He turned around to the direction he had come from and froze.

Acromantula. Or at least something very much alike, though this one seemed to have an additional stinger at the rear end too. Great, just his luck. He had had enough of big, man eating spiders to last a life time! Okay, a big fricking spider drooling in front of him. Check. A big sticky web somewhere behind him, also check. Perhaps he could make a mad dash for the sides in hopes of getting away from here? But in his feverish, half crippled state he would be no match for an eight legged creature in full health. He knew that all too well. Perhaps he could bargain with the thing? They were both creatures, here, right? One big world, make love not war and all that jazz. Not that he'd even think of getting it on with the creepy crawler.

"Erm... Hello?" Harry offered meekly, trying not to blink, meeting the multiple gleaming eyes of the spider as it drooled at him. The leg which had been slowly sneaking towards him stilled. The eyes blinked and the thing looked confused. Perhaps its food had never tried talking with it before this.

"..."

Perhaps the huge spider creatures here couldn't speak? But it had stopped when he talked, so it probably understood him to at least some extent.

"Um, could you please not eat me? I don't think I'd make a good meal, since I'm so small and skinny and stuff. I could, uh, find you something... meatier. If you let me go that is. Or I could introduce you to the acromantula in Forbidden Forest when I find out how to get back to where I came from... or something..."

The spider was still staring at Harry and it was starting to make him uneasy. Just as he was about to open his mouth again, the spider resumed its movement, lunging for him. Quickly diving to the side he avoided the brunt of the attack, receiving a glancing blow from one of the eight legs. It was enough to send him crashing into a tree. Damn but that creature was strong.

"I guess that's a no", Harry gasped out and then coughed from his spot against the tree. He wondered if he had broken a rib or two. It sure hurt enough for it. At the very least he had twisted his ankle at some point in that short scuffle. There was no hope of getting away now. So this was the way he'd die - alone, in a strange land, naked and a midget. If anyone ever found out, they'd make some teaching fairytale out of him, no doubt. "Indecency leads to death", or something similar.

He realized his weakened condition wasn't agreeing with the all the exercise as he noted the way his vision was swimming, the edges of it darkening steadily. At least he wouldn't be awake to feel the pain of his death, he thought distantly. As he stared at the darkening, small, wooden block resting innocently against his palm he wondered if his brother had bought it as a good luck charm. It sure hadn't done its job all that well. The last thing he heard before the blackness took him was the clang of metal and the deafening screech of the spider creature.

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End Chapter 1

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**AN**: I'm not too clear on the geography of Middle-Earth and stuff. It's been a while since I last read Lord of The Rings, but I'm using a map and general timeline to keep on track of things. I never finished Silmarillion so forgive me if I make mistakes. I'll just chalk them up to this being an AU.

There are several plot thingies going on here that will not be revealed until later on. Let's just say that as the summary mentioned, the charm is important. So is the place Harry appeared in and his new appearance. I doubt you'll piece it all together since some of it is all made up, but a cookie and a character to the one who gets at least close.

As mentioned before, I have yet to decide on the pairing. I'm not going to take a poll - I dislike those things - but I'll listen to your suggestions gladly and even consider the most popular choices closely.

Like always, English isn't my first language and I have no beta. Please leave a review after you finish reading, whether you liked it or not.

**For the previous reviewers**;

_KIA_ - I'm sorry if you feel this isn't angsty enough. It's not really meant to be angst though, more like a pondering spiritual opening to the fic. Thank you for your opinion, however, I hope it'll help me improve the emotions in my writing, and I'm sorry for your loss.

_Dumbledor_ - You'd be right. The fic was only marked as completed because I didn't know when and if I'd be continuing it. Thank you for your comment, I'm glad you think my English is good enough!

_My Solitude _- Yep, it was pretty much meant to do that. Somewhat "tide the things over" until I get to continue with it, I guess? Thanks for reviewing~

See you next chapter!

- Illusia


	3. Chapter 2

**AN**: I was amazed by the number of reviews the new chapter got. A big bucket of cookies and love to everyone who left a review, I loved reading them all immensely. The response has been all positive so far - in fact I'm surprised that no one has seen it fit to flame me, yet. Kind of disappointed as well, weird as that is. Maybe I'm a masochist. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this new chapter as well. We see some more dialogue this time, thank heavens!

**Summary**: Harry was always a sickly child, but it all came crashing down with one word: Leukemia. Trapped inside a hospital since his 14th birthday, one night and one charm would change it all...

**Warnings**: AU, Harry's run-off mouth/mind, Future Slash and (far-off future) Mature content.

**Disclaimer**: While Ginny was busy choking on popcorn, all the elves in Middle Earth decided that since they never get any kids anyways, they might as well go for same sex marriage and went ahead with it. They're all part of the "fairer sex", anyway.

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**Memory of Tomorrow - Chapter 2**

Harry was drifting. He figured he should've been worried by the way he couldn't seem to concentrate on anything, or the way he seemed to be floating in nothingness, but couldn't muster up the energy to do so. His mind was groggy and slow, thoughts struggling to progress like a group of weary bees stuck in thick, heavy mud. He thought he could hear voices - one he didn't recognize, calling for something to go faster, and another he thought could've been his mother, crying quietly. He felt a small pang of guilt but it was more out of obligation than anything else. He just couldn't bring himself to feel sorry for her or to do anything about it. He thought he might've managed to twitch his fingers a little, since the crying stopped, but didn't know for sure for the darkness was pulling him under once more. He didn't fight it.

* * *

Cold hands were holding him tightly, something moving under him, wind whipping at his face. He might've made a sound of distress since one of the hands was suddenly combing through his hair, a voice whispering soothing things in his ear. Harry was gone before he could process the words.

* * *

Warmer hands were stroking his cheek, his mother's voice humming near him. He tried to open his eyelids but they were so very heavy... His mother hummed on.

* * *

The nothingness was a comforting place to float in. What remained of his mind was annoyed by the endless tug-o-war that seemed to pull him in two different directions. It was a constant source of irritation for him in the otherwise soothing sea of nothing. He just wanted to rest so why couldn't the pull let him? Giving a mental sigh, his mind gave up the fight and allowed itself to be dragged up with the sudden strong yank from the other direction.

* * *

A loud, girlish squeal irritated his throbbing head and he welcomed the shushing sound following it for the quiet it brought. He thought he should recognize the happy, young voices but couldn't quite understand why. He didn't fight the pull when it came.

* * *

He was lying on something bumpy, wrapped in heavy yet smooth cloth. He was too hot and the thing was constricting him - he fought against it with flaying limbs and sounds of protest. Suddenly the cloth was gone and he was free to gulp huge gasps of cool air. Cold hands were again holding him up in a sitting position, a voice trying to calm him down.

"There, child, deep breaths. You're alright, you're safe, nothing will-"

He drifted away once more.

* * *

Lilyanne. He could remember her name now, though his mind floundered for who she was. The girl was talking to him, brushing his nose with something. Harry wished he had the strength to tell her to stop, but he could only listen.

"..and then Char' told unca Remus what unca Sirius did, and he was really mad! You shoulda seen it, Harry, he just yelled like a ban-shee! But unca Sirius said that..."

Harry fought against the weight of his eyelids, managing to open them halfway. He could see an unclear red and yellow blur near him - Lilyanne, since her voice rang out, suddenly shrill and loud, from the blob.

"Mum! Mum, Harry opened his eyes just now, he-"

He was lost in the warm, rocking waves of oblivion.

* * *

"You found a what!"

Voices were shouting, arguing. The loudness of them was grating his ears, making his head hurt and breath constrict and he might've let out a whimper, but he didn't know because he could only hear the blood rushing in his ears. The voices were suddenly gone, quieted by his discomfort and the cold hands were back. He must've been lying on a bed, the silky, cool sheets a blessing against his heated skin.

"I'm sorry for yelling, little one. You're safe here now. You're going to get better. Lord Elrond will make sure of that."

Harry drifted off, leaning into the hand petting his hair, feeling like he was falling asleep for the first time in years. The hand continued to play with his hair long after his breathing had evened out, soothing away his nightmares and giving him comfort.

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His return to consciousness came in stages. The first sign of the end of his drifting was the lightening of the darkness that constantly surrounded him. Sounds started to filter through the silence, filling the empty nothingness with life once more. The smooth, silky fabrics surrounding him felt heavenly and he wanted nothing more than to snuggle into them and continue sleeping but he knew he couldn't fall asleep again, not after having rested so long. How long, he didn't know exactly, but he knew it must've been at least a day or two.

Reluctantly, Harry cracked his eyes open as little as possible, cringing at the brightness of the room. His eyes adjusted to the light faster than he had expected, allowing him to open them fully and take in his surroundings. The room looked unfamiliar; the whole structure and decoration screamed 'foreign' louder than the forest he had woken up in. The walls all bore an intricate pattern and plenty of pillars, looking strangely delicate and majestic. There was an open balcony at one wall, and the windows took up most of what was left of it. It was a beautiful and bright room, but not one he could feel comfortable in. It was too vastly different from anything he was familiar with.

Harry wondered where he was, now. From what little he could piece together of his fragmented memories during the time he had been ill, someone had found him. He could recall the clang of metal he had heard before - dare he say it - fainting after the spider attack. That someone had taken him somewhere, and someone had healed him there. A whole lot of somes in that sentence. He wondered where his saviours were now, since he had woken up completely alone.

He decided he might as well go look for them, and slowly sat up in his bed, expecting to feel the pain from previous days assaulting him once more. He was pleasantly surprised when he only felt small twinges and a slight ache from his protesting muscles. He was also pleased to find that he was wearing some kind of a robe with curious, weaving patterns and complex fastening at the front. It was a normal, white colour but appeared to be made of something really expensive, not that Harry knew much about fabrics. It just had that sort of feel to it. At least he wasn't naked anymore.

He fingered the sleeves curiously for a moment, before freezing as he realized the lack of weight on his left wrist. His charm! The charm Charlus had given him wasn't there. Had someone taken it from him and why? He looked around searching for the small piece of wood, wishing against all hope it hadn't dropped at some point when he was being rescued by his unidentified saviour. True, it hadn't exactly worked too well as a good luck charm, but it was the only thing left of his home. Nothing else remained to remind him of what he had left behind - even his body was different, here.

Well, all the more reason to find his rescuers, Harry decided. With newly found motivation, he clambered up from the comfy, inviting bed and stood up uncertainly, wondering if he should find something else to wear before venturing out. He was saved from making a decision by the gasp from the doorway. A wide eyed woman with black hair pulled back to reveal pointed ears like his own was standing with her hand still on the door handle, staring at him. Harry cleared his throat nervously, wondering why the woman looked like she couldn't decide between being overjoyed or running away screaming.

"You're awake!" was the first thing out of the woman's mouth, told to him in a voice that sounded like bells tingling. Harry stared back, his face blank.

"I know?"

To his amusement, the regal looking woman flushed slightly, looking embarrassed, before straightening her shoulders and smiling at him.

"My apologies. We have been awaiting your awakening for several days now. You are the first youngling since our Lady Arwen, and that was over two thousand years ago. We have greatly worried for you, little one."

It was Harry's turn to gape with wide eyes. Over two millenia since someone was born! How were they still alive as a race if they never got any kids? The woman didn't look a day over thirty! By the sound of things she must have been way older, though. People sure aged well over here. And apparently he had been sleeping for days, too.

"Um, I'm sorry for worrying you?" he offered hesitantly.

"It was not your fault. I'm just glad Lagorind found you when he did - I fear to think of what would have happened had he not! Oh, forgive me for my manners - my name is Mereniel. I serve Lord Elrond here in Imladris."

Hearing the strange name made Harry hesitate giving his own. He wasn't sure where he was and what creatures these people with weird ears were - obviously, he was now one himself so what would his common human name sound like to them? Were there any humans around here at all? For now it might be best to answer as few questions as possible and gather information. Yeah, that sounded good.

That decided, Harry just smiled hesitantly at the woman and took her offered hand, feeling somewhat childish in doing so. Well, he looked like a kid so he might as well act like one. Mereniel smiled back at him and turned to lead him out of the room, explaining where they were going as they walked.

"Lagorind and Lord Elrond have been very worried over you, child. Lord Elrond was the one to take care of you while you were ill - his healing skills are widely known in Middle Earth."

"Middle Earth?" Harry blurted out before thinking. Mereniel eyed him oddly, the nodded.

"Yes, Middle Earth. The name of this land. Surely you know that?"

Harry nodded quickly, trying to look like he had known that all along. Middle Earth? Was there a lower and upper or right and left Earth somewhere? Was this some other planet, another dimension or another reality completely? Where in the World was he!

"As I was saying, Lord Elrond healed you. He is the father of Lady Arwen. I think he would like to hear how you came to be where Lagorind found you. I was instructed to bring you to him as soon as you woke up."

So basically, this Lord Elrond was some high up guy in the hierarchy and he was going to interrogate Harry right away on his situation. Great. Maybe they'd go easy on him because he was the first kid of their kind in a millennium or two? Or maybe not. Hmm.. He could claim amnesia, he supposed. He hadn't yet said anything overly important, and his question of the place being Middle Earth might actually support this theory. And he really knew nothing of the place anyways, so he'd appear right clueless as he was expected to. Yes, that'd work well, even if it embarrassed him somewhat. His musings were cut short by Mereniel.

"Here we are."

They were standing in front of elaborately carved double doors, having reached their destination while Harry was thinking of his strategy. Mereniel reached to lightly knock on the wood and the young elf held his breath while waiting for the reply. A calm, low voice called for them to enter and Mereniel swung the doors open, stepping aside to let Harry enter. He glanced back when the woman didn't follow him.

"I haven't been invited for this talk, young one", she smiled at him gently, kneeling slightly to be at his eye level. Harry frowned, not liking the idea of staying with two strangers alone. He didn't really know Mereniel but she had been nice so far and he liked her. Sighing, he nodded at the dark haired woman and turned around when she left, closing the doors and leaving him to inspect the two men left in the room.

The one he assumed was Lord Elrond was sitting behind a dark, wooden desk, shelf after shelf full of books lining the wall behind his back. The room was impressive, likely used as a study. The dark haired man behind the desk was even more impressive, though. He had a regal atmosphere to him, the air of someone used to giving orders and expecting others to follow them. He demanded respect with his stature, even though his dark grey eyes were gentle and his smile kind. He was wearing an impressive layer of some sort of robes, white and grey tied together in a way that made the outfit seem both formal and comfortable. His long, black hair was partly tied back, displaying the same ears Mereniel and Harry himself had, confirming his suspicions of them belonging to some race with ears being their distinctive feature.

That and beauty, apparently, Harry decided upon examining the second figure. This was Lagorind, he assumed, the one who had found him. The man was a contrast to Elrond in everything but regalness. Where Lord Elrond had black hair, his was like molten gold. He was smaller than the other man, but stood proudly with his back straight and shoulders squared like a soldier. Lagorind's features were narrower, his eyes much paler than the darker man's, a blue shade that reminded Harry of ice. His expression, like Elrond's, was kind, however, so Harry allowed himself to relax slightly.

They had all finished their personal scrutinizations of the others, it appeared, since Elrond gestured for the boy to take a seat. Harry cautiously approached the desk and sat down in the only chair left in the room. Lagorind didn't seem to mind standing.

"Hello, little one. I'm pleased to see you so well and healthy - you gave us quite the scare. As I'm sure Mereniel has told you, my name is Elrond and this is Lagorind" - Lagorind nodded at his name, looking as if he was trying hard not to stare at Harry - "the one who found you. Which brings me to the question, how did an elfling come to be in the forests of Mirkwood, so near the spiders? We asked our silvan allies and the elves of Lórien and neither are missing a youngling. Where did you come from, young one?"

Harry blinked and tilted his head, storing this information in his mind. So they were called elves. He had never heard of elves before, aside from a rare muggle fairytale, and the only similarly named creature he could think of was house elf... But he somehow doubted the two races were related. Perhaps this was, indeed, a different dimension or reality. He thought they'd have at least heard of the creatures if they had existed for some millenia, in hiding or not. For now, his best bet was to go with the amnesia story.

"I'm not sure - I mean, I woke up in the forest and walked around for a while, but I don't know how I got there - or where it is, really. Is no one really missing me?" Harry asked, glancing at both elves and looking to his lap as if embarrassed. The sad thing was that all of what he'd just said was completely, 100% true.

"You do not know how you came to be in Mirkwood?" Lagorind finally spoke, sounding surprised. Harry recognized the voice from his time of drifting, connecting it with the cold hands that had soothed him during his illness. He offered the man a nod and a timid smile, receiving a warmer one back.

"What is your name, young one?" Elrond asked, interrupting their perusal of one another. Harry turned back to the elven lord and shrugged helplessly, having already decided on not giving his true name. It would sound weird compared to their names and would not support his amnesia story. When he got around to telling it, that is, since the two men didn't appear to be in a hurry to piece it together.

"You don't know?"

This time it was Lord Elrond who sounded surprised.

"No. I only remember waking up in the forest and walking for a day or so. And then the spider, and that's pretty much it. I don't know how I got there or who I am... If no one's missing me, maybe I wasn't wanted", Harry answered. His voice sounded bitter even to his own ears. It wasn't exactly fair - he knew his mother and siblings loved him and he loved them just as much, but his father had always been a sore point for the teenager.

"You have no past", Elrond stated, frowning slightly. He leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers in front of his chin, thinking. Lagorind looked sad and shifted slightly, as if wishing to be able to offer some sort of comfort for the younger elf.

"I do not think you could have been unwanted, child. Elflings are rare and immensely treasured. If your birth had been known to us, we would have celebrated and you would never have left our sight", Lagorind stated firmly. Harry blinked up at him. He wondered if they would've treated him the same as his father, had he grown up here with them instead of on Earth, with his family.

"Lagorind is correct. Elflings are our joy and pride, a rare gift granted to us by the Valar. You would have been welcome anywhere in this realm. I do not know how you came to be in the forest or who your parents are, but I am glad we found you when we did. We will give you time to adjust to life in Imladris. Hopefully, after a while you will feel at home here. If you wish it then, I will adopt you myself - or if you wish, so will any other elf you come across, without hesitation", Elrond said, smiling and moving his hands to rest on his desk. He fixed Harry with intent look.

"We need a name for you, child. We can not keep calling you "young one" forever."

Harry blinked. He knew nothing of the names here, there was no way he'd be able to pick one for himself.

"Umm... You can name me. I don't really care what you call me, as long as it's not an insult", he finally shrugged helplessly. Lagorind and Elrond looked slightly upset at that, and Lagorind voiced both of their thoughts.

"We'd never give you an insult as a name, young one."

He glanced towards his lord and both looked deep in thought for a while.

"How about Calenion?" Lagorind asked, looking at Harry. He hesitated before shrugging again, somewhat reluctantly.

"No, then", Lagorind stated, and looked at Elrond.

"What do you think of Eryndir? Since you were found in a forest", Elrond suggested.

"Or perhaps Rhíorn?" Lagorind offered.

"Calador is a good name, as well", Elrond continued.

Harry thought his neck would snap from having to switch between targets constantly and held his hands up to stop the flood of suggestions.

"I like Eryndir", he said, mostly to quell any further propositions, but he actually did like that one quite well. It was rather different from Harry, but it sounded good and would do for now.

"Then Eryndir it is", Elrond said, looking pleased. Lagorind seemed to be almost pouting at his choice not making the cut. Harry, now Eryndir, smiled at him, hoping he hadn't hurt the elf by not picking his suggestion. Lagorind winked back, making Harry grin widely in return.

"Well, Eryndir. Now that you have been named I do not doubt you are hungry, so Lagorind will show you to the dining hall. Please treat this place as your home. I hope you will come to love Imladris as such. I will see you this evening at dinner", Lord Elrond told Harry with a note of finality in his voice. Harry nodded and thanked the elf, hopping off the chair and looking up at Lagorind who seemed quite happy with his task.

The blond elf offered his hand to the young elfling, who took it and followed him out of the study and to the winding hallways.

"So, umm..." Harry paused wondering what he should call the older elf. Was he supposed to call him lord, like they did to Elrond? Lagorind seemed to sense his thoughts because he smiled towards him.

"Just call me Lagorind, Eryndir. I hope you won't do as the twins do, though - they tend to take liberties. My name is not Gory."

Harry laughed at the disgruntled look on the blond elf's face.

"Okay, Lagorind. I was just wondering, but - what's the date? And, umm... Where am I exactly? Do you have a map or something I could see?"

"Hmm... I think Erestor should have a map somewhere. As for the date, it is currently May, the 15th, year 2951."

Harry stopped and turned wide eyes towards Lagorind who paused and turned to look at him, concerned.

"2951!" Harry squeaked.

Lagorind cocked his head as if unsure what the problem was.

"Yes, 2951 of the Third Age."

Harry stared. Okay, that was... bad. Possibly. Maybe he wasn't in another dimension but the future? But how much could a world change in an almost-a-millennium? Actually, he didn't want to know. Probably a lot. But if he was in the future, how did he get here and how did he go back? Time travel was strictly restricted as far as he knew, and the longest anyone had ever gone was still below 24 hours - so how had he ended up a good, hmm... 950-something years in the future? Actually, Lagorind had said the Third Age. Were there a Second Age and First Age there somewhere? How far in the future _was_ he? He was starting to hope this was, in fact, a different reality with a different time line, because getting stuck millenia into the future wasn't his idea of a prank.

"...Right. Sorry about that. Lead on, Lagorind", Harry finally said, abandoning his inner monologue in favour of stopping the other elf from looking so bewildered. Lagorind slowly nodded and they started walking again.

"How old are you, Eryndir?" Lagorind asked all of the sudden. Harry looked at him questioningly but answered none the less.

"I'm sixteen."

"Oh? You are younger than I thought. Though I do wonder how an elfling could go without notice for sixteen years... Perhaps you were sent by the Valar."

Harry wondered who the Valar were if they could send people around as they pleased. Lord Elrond had also referred to them earlier, hadn't he? Something about children being a gift from them... Perhaps they were the local god(s) or something.

"How old are you, Lagorind?" Harry asked back, curious of the answer. If he looked older than 16 when he thought he looked like he was eight, then Lagorind must've been really old.

"I'm 3117 years old", Lagorind told him, smiling amusedly. Harry gaped.

"You're _old_!" he gasped out and then flushed furiously. "I mean- I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Eryndir, it is alright. I know I am much older than you, but elves have long lives. We are considered immortal. We do not die, but we can fade - usually from a heartbreak. It is a sad thing to watch an elf fade. Most choose to leave for Valinor before they do."

Harry turned to look at the floor, unable to stand the forlorn, pained look on Lagorind's face. Perhaps he had lost someone to this "fading" business. But the other elf's age confirmed it - there must've been several ages. Which really made sense, since - as he had thought before - there was no way the whole race could've hidden for so long from their notice. Though he still thought this must've been some different realm or reality from his own.

They reached the dining hall in silence and Lagorind paused at the open arch with no door. There were a few elves sitting around a long, wide table, conversing with each other, but they all fell silent upon the sight of him. Harry cringed and hid behind Lagorind, trying to avoid the curious stares from the other elves. Lagorind sent them all a hard look, causing them to suddenly turn back to their conversations with slightly flushed faces.

"I think Mereniel is waiting for you in your rooms, so I shall lead you there after you finish dining. There are various fruits at the table, so just pick whatever you wish and I will wait here, Eryndir."

Lagorind leaned against the wall, pushing him slightly onwards and sending him an encouraging smile before leaving him on his own to face the scary table with several elves - all of them trying hard to look as if they weren't constantly glancing at him from the corners of their eyes. Harry sighed and squared his shoulders, heading for a free chair.

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End of Chapter 2.

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**AN**: So, that's another chapter done. The usual warnings apply. I have no beta and English isn't my first language, so my apologies for any mistakes you may find. If you spot any, please tell me and I'll fix them.

As a side note, Lagorind and Mereniel are both OCs since I don't remember that many Rivendell elves besides Elrond and Arwen and the twins. Lagorind supposedly means "swift thought" and Mereniel is intended to be "joyous daughter". Who knows if they're right.

Calenion means "green son" - I hope - and Eryndir is simply "forest" and "male" together. Rhíorn is "winter tree" and Calador means "light forest".

What did you think of the OCs? Hate them? Like them? Let me know so I can consider their future roles in this fic. Other real characters beyond Elrond will be making appearances soon, mostly elves until the ring events start somewhere 60 or so years in the future. A lot will happen before that, though, so expect slow progress~! Oh, and Harry will be referred to as Harry for a while longer, as long as it takes for him to start thinking of himself as Eryndir.

Please leave a review, whether you liked it or not. All comments are appreciated.

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**Replies to the reviewers.** (There's nothing more after this so you can quit reading if you wish or skip to next chapter when it's available.)

**Angel-Hime-Chan**: Thank you. I'm not overly familiar with Glorfindel, since his appearances are rather short in the books. What I know could be summed up with "he killed a balrog and he's _old_". Legolas I know much better, but that pairing is quite common. I'll give both choices fair consideration, to be sure!

**kitine1**: I'm glad you like it! I love stories where Harry's an elfling, too. And rest assured, I will be writing only a pairing I like myself, but so far I'm not really leaning towards anything so suggestions are welcomed. Though Harry has a while to go yet, indeed.

**Lo Lo**: You'll find that out soon enough, perhaps not in the next few chapters but it won't be too long. Thank you for your comment!

**libsrevenge**: As I told Lo Lo, just look forward to it ;3. I like to think my English is pretty good since I've studied it for about 14 years or so. If it wasn't by now, I'd be very embarrassed.

**HikariAi**: Pairing is undecided, at the moment, but hopefully I'll be able to make up my mind before it becomes neccessary. I'm happy you liked the chapter!

**red713**: Yep, the tree is important. The transportation isn't really the (only) reason, though I guess you could say it was. Hmm. Well, if there's a point in the story where I'll be able to explain all the stuff behind the plot, I'll happily go into greater detail - for now, let's keep it a mystery. Thank you for the lengthy review, it was really helpful!

**Akahi**, **Yana5**, **Laesk**, **Talia Gea**, **ami** and the one **anon**: Thank you.

**Moonta**: Yes, Aragorn is one of the people I'm considering, though his age and humanity are a small disadvantage. I don't think there'll be any mpreg in this fic because I shy away from the concept myself - I don't like reading it too much, so I doubt I'll be writing it. I guess we'll have to see how it progresses. Thanks for the review!

**DanteSeth**: The twins are nice, aren't they? Though once again my knowledge of them pretty much consists of what little fanfics I've read. If I go with them I'll have to do some research I guess. Thanks for comment~

**Halimede**: You deserve the cookie I mentioned! I didn't think anyone would bring up the White Tree, but it is indeed related though I'm not sure if it's in the way you think. Pippin hasn't even been born yet at this point of the timeline. Regardless, good conclusions! I loved reading them, and thanks for the review as well!

**goth-girl-in-pink**: Thank you, I've read and enjoyed your HpLotr x-over so far as well. And indeed, they were in Mirkwood, where spideys spawn and elves wander... Apparently.

Thanks to all who favourited and added the story to their alerts, as well!


	4. Chapter 3

**AN**: The response has once more been a delight. I'm glad so many of you like the story so far. To set one of the fears raised to rest, no, this will not be a fic where the protagonist wakes up to find it all a dream. I'm sure it'll all become clear before long, but everything that's happening is really happening - Harry's not delusional. At least, not most of the time. He might be a bit crazy sometimes, but then again, who isn't?

As a side note, I changed part of the summary from 13th birthday to 14th, since technically he only got indefinitely hospitalized then. And sorry for the delay (though to be honest, I expect the updates to be slower from now on, in any case), I've been sick with a nasty case of flu. The fever made me somewhat messed in the head, too, and I managed to spill boiling water on my fingers when trying to make tea so writing hurt for a while.

**Summary**: Harry was always a sickly child, but it all came crashing down with one word: Leukemia. Trapped inside a hospital since his 14th birthday, one night and one charm would change it all...

**Warnings**: AU, Harry's run-off mouth/mind, Future Slash and (far-off future) Mature content.

**Disclaimer**: As the elves were celebrating their new found tradition, Ginny's ghost was eaten by a Venus Flytrap. No precious food sources were wasted, this time.

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**Memory of Tomorrow - Chapter 3**

Lagorind and Harry had barely enough time to enter the younger elf's room before a flustered looking Mereniel descended upon them and started scolding a bewildered Lagorind.

"It's bad enough I forgot about it and let him go and meet Lord Elrond dressed in his nightwear, but you let him enter the dining hall in those clothes! What were you thinking, Lagorind!"

Harry blinked, looking down at what he was wearing. Sure, it didn't seem quite as fancy as what rest of the elves had been wearing, but it was much better than anything he had ever owned before, just for the fabrics used in it. He really didn't see anything wrong with it, but if Mereniel said it was a night gown, then perhaps it was. He wondered what all the elves that had stared at him had thought of his apparel and grinned slightly. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and listened to Mereniel complain to Lagorind a while longer - she really sounded much less formal when she was annoyed at something. He figured he should probably save the poor man from having to listen to her ranting for the next few hours, and cleared his throat.

"I like it", he told the woman, blinking big, innocent eyes towards her. They always worked on his mother - he felt a pang of longing and quickly schooled his slipping expression back to the Puppy Dog Eyes of Doom, as Lilyanne always called them. She could do them almost as well as Harry - he had taught her how, after all. Mereniel visibly faltered and turned away from the properly chastised male, facing Harry and kneeling to get to his eye level once more. Harry kind of liked how she did that, it made him feel not-so-much like a child.

"I'm glad you like them, young one-"

"Eryndir", Lagorind interrupted, then quickly raised his hands up in a placating gesture when Mereniel turned her head and gave him a _look_ - Wow, she was almost as good as Mother at that - before turning back to Harry and continuing.

"-Eryndir, then, but they are still nightwear. You should not wander around in them, at least not in the shared areas. You are free to wear them in your rooms or the other private areas nearby, if you wish."

"Okay, Mereniel", Harry beamed at her, mentally cheering for having diverted her attention away from the lecture. Lagorind grinned at him when Mereniel wasn't looking, clearly knowing what he had done. He quickly hid it when Mereniel rose and turned back to him with a raised eyebrow. Deciding to distract Mereniel from starting another rant, Harry voiced a concern that had slipped from his mind in all the excitement of meeting Lord Elrond and getting a new name.

"Did you find a wooden block tied to my wrist when you saved me from the spider thing, Lagorind?" he asked the blond elf, looking hopefully at him. It was Mereniel who answered him, though.

"You did have something like that with you - I thought it seemed important, so I placed it in the drawer. It should still be there, wrapped in a red cloth", the woman said, making a slight gesture with her hand towards the small bedside table next to Harry's bed.

Harry clapped his hands then abruptly stopped upon realizing how childish that was, blushing but hurrying to the nightstand and digging into the drawer. He found the charm easily, wrapped inside a velvet cloth just like Mereniel had promised. He was relieved the amulet was safe and still with him - it seemed important. It was the only thing he had brought with him, after all, and there must've been some significance to that.

"I take it that piece of wood is something precious to you?" Lagorind asked, looking curious. Harry paused in his inspection of the charm and frowned in thought before answering.

"Yes", he finally said, glancing at the man from the corner of his eye. "It was the only thing I had with me in the forest - I thought it must be something important. It's the only clue I have to my past."

It was a semi-honest answer, as truthful as he could make it. He didn't want to lie to these people, they had saved him and helped him, asking for nothing in return, so the least he could do was keep everything as close to the truth as possible.

"In that case, I think I could do something that would make it easier for you to carry it around", Mereniel offered, smiling and walking around the bed to take the wooden block from Harry. The teenager blinked but gave the charm to her without protest. She pulled a long, thin silk ribbon from her hair, letting the dark mass fall to frame her face properly. As Harry watched with interest, she slipped the strip of cloth through the hole in the wood and tied the two ends tightly, testing them with a snapping pull. Seemingly deeming it good enough, she offered the self-made necklace to the boy.

"Thank you", Harry said quietly, accepting the charm. The ribbon was just long enough for him to slip the improvised accessory over his head, letting the wooden piece fall against the nightgown covering his chest. He slipped it under the white fabric and smiled at the she-elf.

"I will leave you two to get Eryndir properly clothed, I suppose. I believe Estel promised to practice swords with me - I'll be at the training area if you need me, Eryndir, Mereniel", Lagorind said, watching Harry finger his new necklace. The younger elf snapped his head up in horror at the words, sending a pleading look towards the older man - Harry knew well how women got when clothes were in question, and he didn't want to be abandoned here at Mereniel's mercy. Apparently Lagorind was immune to the Puppy Dog Eyes of Doom, however, and he merely grinned and winked before striding out the door and closing it behind him, leaving the two elves alone in the room.

"Now then", Mereniel started cheerfully. Harry turned slowly to look at her with horrified, green eyes.

"Let us get started with those clothes, Eryndir. I'm certain we can find something just right for you..."

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Never again, Harry vowed to himself, shuddering slightly as he walked through the empty hallways, lost but not caring. Mereniel had been very adamant on making Harry try on outfit after outfit, never satisfied with any of them. Harry stopped trying to see any difference after the fifth one - they all looked the same to him, anyways. He had been terribly embarrassed when the woman had stayed in the room while he changed, seeming completely unfazed by the idea of helping him in and out of clothes. Perhaps elves didn't have the concept of "decency"?

'_But seriously, this place is a _maze _- honestly, it's more confusing than the Forbidden Forest_', Harry mused while looking at the scenery outside the curved, large windows framing the right side of the corridor he was currently walking along. Imladris was beautiful, he'd give them that. Elves sure knew their architecture, to build a city like this without even disturbing the nature - it looked as if the buildings had somehow grown from the ground, accentuating the nature just as it accentuated them, both living in perfect harmony and peaceful coexistence. Harry didn't think he had ever seen anything quite like this place anywhere on Earth. The non-Middle one, that is.

Muffled voices drew his attention from admiring the scenery, and it took Harry a while to realize he was outside of Lord Elrond's office. Well, at least he wasn't lost anymore. He raised his hand to knock on the door in the hopes of getting someone to lead him back to his room, when he paused, not really knowing why, and pressed his ear against the door to listen instead. Something about the quality of the voices hinted at a serious conversation. Harry was too curious for his own good, really, a fact Charlus was always needling him about.

"So he has returned to Mordor... It is ominous he should choose to return there. Are you certain what you saw was the Barad-dûr?"

The voice was Lord Elrond's, though it held a new nuance of almost-apprehension that didn't fit the elven lord.

"Yes - I am certain, though it appeared to be unfinished", a new voice answered. It wasn't one Harry was familiar with, which wasn't all that strange considering the number of elves he actually knew. The speaker was male, he was sure, and sounded authoritative and strong, like a leader would. He differed from Elrond's gentler voice, though, somehow lacking the smooth, refined undertones that seemed to come naturally to most other elves. He sounded like a fighter, all sharp edges and unbending will, the untamed harshness of the wild.

"This is grave news, Lord Elrond", another unfamiliar voice spoke up. This one sounded nothing like the previous one - where it had held strength and willpower, the new voice held wisdom and peace. It reminded Harry of dry parchment and black ink, of the smell of old books and the dim lights of the Potter library, of a calm winter morning before sunrise.

"My Lord Elrond, pardon me for saying this, but I think Estel should be told of his roots", a new voice suddenly stated. Harry's ears perked at the familiar tones of Lagorind, and he smiled before frowning at the words. It sounded like a non sequitur. He couldn't really understand any of this conversation, but it seemed important so he decided against knocking and disturbing the small gathering just yet. Perhaps he would understand it later, once he knew more.

"He is already of age for Men", the Soldier, as Harry had dubbed him in his mind, agreed. "And if Sauron has indeed started to build his troops yet again, we will need all the forces _we_ can gather. Estel will make a good ruler, somewhen."

Wasn't Estel the elf Lagorind had gone to practice swords with? Why were they referring to his being of age for men? Was the age they considered you an adult different for women and men, here? That seemed kind of unfair, but maybe there was a reason for it. Harry shrugged mentally and decided to ask about it later.

The young elf heard Lord Elrond sigh and wondered if he should just knock and get on with it. He didn't have time to, though, as the door was suddenly pulled open just as he raised his hand once more, startling him enough that he jumped back and away from the doorway, falling on his bottom on the stone floor.

"It seems there are little birds with big sense of curiosity wandering the halls", the amused voice of the Soldier spoke as Harry scowled and scampered back up, glaring at the elf. He looked kind of like Lagorind, but somehow wilder and more confident. His eyes held a certain weariness and wisdom, his amused smile unforced and genuine. His hair was just a hint lighter than Lagorind's and his eyes were the same icy blue, but greener than the other elf's. They still could've passed for brothers to anyone who didn't know them personally.

"My name is Glorfindel - I have been away from Imladris, scouting the land. I would have come to see you earlier had I been present", the Soldier, now titled Glorfindel, told him before turning to walk back into the study, leaving the door open for Harry. The blond elf looked at Elrond and raised one eyebrow. "I take it this is the lost elfling Lagorind found?"

"Yes, this is Eryndir", Elrond answered with another sigh and directed a very stern look at the poor elfling. Harry gulped, attempting a hesitant smile and widening his eyes so much he feared they might pop out of their sockets. No one had ever bothered to tell him that nothing screamed guilt louder than an overly innocent expression, much like the one he was currently wearing.

"Pray tell, Eryndir, what you were doing behind the door?" Elrond asked, sounding both scolding and amused, which was a notable achievement in Harry's opinion. He offered a somewhat sheepish smile and shifted on his feet slightly.

"I was just lost and- I thought you might be able to get someone to take me back to my rooms and, well, I heard your voices and it sounded important and I really didn't want to interrupt and-"

"Eryndir, calm down", Lagorind said, moving to lay a hand lightly on his shoulder. He sounded just as amused as Elrond had, making Harry want to scowl at the both of them. Why was everyone always having fun on his expense? It wasn't like he tried to get into these situations, they somehow found him. Though perhaps this time it was his fault, him having eavesdropped on them and all.

"I assume you heard some of what we were talking about then, young one?" the fourth man who had escaped Harry's notice so far asked. He snapped his head around to stare at the dark haired elf sitting in the corner of the room and furrowed his brow slightly, inspecting him. This was the owner of the scholarly voice, then. He looked like Snape, Harry realized, understanding where the odd sense of familiarity was coming from. A much prettier, better nosed Snape, he amended, but still a Snape. He had the same black, expressionless eyes and the same black, somewhat oily hair. Harry decided then and there that he didn't like this elf, and resisted the urge to show his tongue at him - he didn't really know the man after all, even if he was the Snape of this Universe.

"Who are you?" he asked rather rudely instead of answering the question. Fake-Snape frowned.

"My name is Erestor", the Scholar said quite testily, "and you are expected to answer a question before asking your own, child."

So this was the man with the map he wanted to see. Perhaps it was best to try and avoid getting on his bad side just yet. He'd always have time to do so later.

"I'm sorry", he told the Snape-imitator, managing a mostly genuine smile. "I just wanted to know who I was talking to. I didn't mean to be rude" - now that was a lie, but what the man didn't know wouldn't hurt him - "but I was curious. I did hear some of it, I guess. Something about Saw-ron or such and, uh, Estel being of age for men... Do men and women age differently?"

The four older elves blinked, then stared blankly at the elfling tilting his head curiously and expecting an answer. Silence reigned. Suddenly Lagorind started to laugh, causing Harry to frown and wonder what he had done this time.

"No, no, Eryndir - when Lord Glorfindel said that Estel was of age 'for Men', he meant the race of Men, not his gender. Estel is not an elf - he is from the race of Men", Lagorind explained, still chuckling. Harry noted Lord Elrond and Glorfindel were smiling as well, while Erestor appeared to have found a book to read without his notice, and didn't even notice their mirth. He also wondered why Lagorind had called Glorfindel a lord as well, but didn't ask about it. He had enough of sounding dim-witted for the day.

Harry sighed and gave Lagorind his best glare before turning towards Glorfindel who hadn't actually laughed at him or made fun of him - well, not much at least, since the older elf had called Harry a bird and that wasn't very nice, even if he deserved it.

"Show me the way to my rooms", he rather bluntly commanded the Soldier, reaching for and grabbing his hand to prevent escape. The blonde elf looked surprised for a moment before smiling and turning to look at Lord Elrond with a question in his eyes.

"You might as well accompany him so he does not end up lost again", Elrond sighed, shaking his head. "Valar knows he seems to excel at finding trouble. We can finish our conversation later."

Glorfindel nodded at the others and took his leave, leading Harry out of the study. As the door closed behind them, Harry heard Lagorind speak: "That reminds me - Eryndir mentioned that he was 16 years old, so he must still remember or subconsciously know some things about himself, perhaps-" before the speech grew too muted for him to make anything sensible out of it.

'_Whoops_', he thought. He'd have to watch what he said more carefully from now on.

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Glorfindel was a pretty good source of information, Harry found out. Apparently he was old - older than Lagorind, even - and knew a whole lot of things due to his migrant ways. He'd explained that he rarely spent longer than a week at one place, preferring to travel around rather than settle down. Harry was kind of disappointed since the blond elf was really good at telling stories. Like the one about the huge beast thing called balrog. In the middle of the second retelling of the fight with the monster (as per Harry's request), the elfling suddenly remembered something that had bothered him during Lagorind's earlier words.

"Hey, Glorfindel", he interrupted the older elf. "What _is_ the race of Men? Don't they have another name? I mean, it could get kind of confusing calling them Men when there's the other word 'men' and so on..."

Harry trailed off, looking expectantly up to the soldier. Glorfindel smiled, not looking the least offended by the interruption.

"They are also called mankind, or humans. They, like us, were created by Ilúvatar. You have a very strange way of speaking, Eryndir. I wonder if it has anything to do with your past", the older elf answered thoughtfully.

Harry frowned at his words. He knew he didn't speak like the other elves. He didn't really know how to, but maybe he'd pick it up with time. In his old world the way they spoke would've made them right at home in the pureblood circles, something Mother had never been too fond of. The more important thing right now was the mankind, though. He'd assumed he was an elf because there were no humans in this world - it made more sense than a sudden inheritance, anyway. But if there were, indeed, non-creatures it begged to question: Why wasn't he a human, anymore? If he found a way back to where he belonged, would he remain an elfling? His family might question his change of appearance and the slow aging thing a little. Voldemort would be happy, no doubt, considering he was pretty much obsessed with achieving immortality. Perhaps he should be grateful it was him who ended up in the middle of the woods and not the Dark Lord. Nah.

"What did Lagorind mean about telling, uh, Estel? About his origins?" Harry asked.

"That is quite complicated, and it is not my story to tell, Eryndir. If Lord Elrond chooses to tell Estel you may ask him, yourself - but before then, I would appreciate it if you held your silence on the matter", Glorfindel replied. It sounded more like an order than a request, but Harry nodded his agreement nevertheless.

"So who's Saw-ron then?" he asked instead.

"Sauron. Spelled S-a-u-r-o-n", the older elf instructed him, looking troubled by the question. "Sauron is... another complicated matter. For now, I will just say that I hope you never have a reason to learn about him."

Sounded like Voldemort, then. Maybe the worlds weren't so different after all. Perhaps this world had its own troubles, just like his had some pretty bad ones. The rest of the walk was spent in a companionable silence. Glorfindel told Harry he'd see him at dinner and left him alone in his room to wonder if braving the hallways again beat doing nothing. He'd likely get lost, but he'd have to learn his way around sooner or later. Besides, he had memorized the way to his rooms from Lord Elrond's office by now, so that made a good stretch of area that he could find his way back from. And dinner was still ages away, too.. Yeah, who was he trying to convince here. Being stuck in a room for hours wasn't fun and he wanted to learn more about this world - guess it was time to face the great outdoors once more. He wondered what he'd tell Glorfindel if he ran into the elf again, probably lost by the time. Best avoid being seen altogether.

Sighing with resignation, Harry left his rooms for the third time that day. Perhaps he would try the gardens this time, rather than getting lost in the labyrinth of corridors. At least he'd be able to see the buildings outside so he couldn't get too badly lost, right?

Right. He'd better learn not to tempt fate. She was a bitch and hated him enough already, without him helping her. He was lost. Again. He'd just wanted to have a look at the forest. They really were beautiful here, with old, big trees and vibrant greenery everywhere, nothing like the woods in Britain. And they made him feel safe and at home, somehow, even with the unfamiliarity. Which was odd now that he thought about it. If he had woken up anywhere else than a forest, he had a feeling he wouldn't have been half as calm as he had when he first realized his situation. For some reason forests calmed him down. How strange. But not the problem right now. The fact remained that he was lost, whether he was calm about it or not. He had been walking around in the woods for what must've been an hour or two. Not one of his brightest ideas, probably. Didn't they have some saying about staying still if you get lost? He'd never been good at following instructions. Snape could attest to that.

Heaving a heavy breath, Harry sat down on the hulking root of a particularly old looking oak tree. He wondered if someone was looking for him and what time it was. The sun was still up and it wasn't too cold so it couldn't have been that late - they might not have discovered him missing, yet. He rather hoped not, because it was kind of embarrassing getting lost constantly. Even if it was to be expected. He wasn't sure if he could find his way back on his own, but he'd try again after sitting for a while. All that walking around was sapping his strength which apparently wasn't back to normal just yet.

While he waited, he hummed under his breath and listened to the sounds of nature surrounding him. Time seemed to stand still here, deep in the safety of the grove. Everything was a strange mix of systematic and disorganized, serene and chaotic. So full of life. A squirrel scurried by him, seemingly not caring about him in the least, actually climbing over his leg on its way. Harry blinked after it, amused but perplexed. Noticing another of the rodents nearby, he made a soft clicking noise with his tongue, extending his arm towards it. The animal raised its head from the snuffling it was doing when it heard the sound and looked at him curiously. Apparently deeming him harmless, it skipped closer to him and stopped on its haunches close enough to sniff at his hand. Wow, wild animals sure were tame here.

"Hello there, little guy - or girl, since I really can't tell", Harry murmured to the squirrel, twitching his fingers slightly. The animal made a chirping sound and jumped on his arm, quickly scuttling to stand on his shoulder. Harry jerked in surprise at the action, nearly dislodging the rodent and making it protest with a loud squeak. He blinked owlishly at the face inches from his own.

"Uh, hi", he managed. The squirrel chirped cheerfully and started chewing on his hair. Harry mentally shrugged and offered his new friend a pine cone he picked from the ground, going back to his humming and observing.

He ended up resting for quite a long time near the oak tree. This wasn't because he was tired or even unwilling to get up - mostly it was because of his sudden entourage and the apparent party going on. The single squirrel had turned into three when its friends came to join him, then they were joined by a few mice who had apparently taken a liking to his sleeves and one black bird who made a nest on his head. Then two deer and a fawn, which was asleep in his lap right now, showed up, soon followed by six hares now munching on grass near his feet. They were joined by a wolf with no apparent interest in all the prey available sitting and thumping its tail whenever he scratched behind its ear, a fox with an unhealthy affection for his ankles, some bugs which had taken residence in his discarded shoes (he had given them up when he noticed the crawlers), some flashy looking big birds who seemed content to strut around and a weird catlike thing with spots and pointy ears he thought might've been a lynx. Harry thought he had the beginnings of his very own zoo right here.

Their peaceful gathering was disturbed by a choking sound from nearby. Harry lifted his eyes from the curious sight of a mouse chasing a squirrel in circles and noticed two dark haired elves standing a few feet from him, eyes wide and incredulous expressions on their faces. The elfling blinked, then lifted his hand and waved a greeting, careful not to disturb the squirrel resting on it. The two remarkably similar looking elves raised their hands in return mindlessly, appearing unaware of even doing so, still staring. Harry frowned.

"Is there a reason you're staring? It's considered quite rude, you know", he informed them. They started, then glanced at each other before lowering their hands and smiling sheepishly.

"I think we were both just surprised. I have never before seen animals acting like that", the one on the right answered him, waving his hand towards the zoo gathered near them. Harry blinked. So it wasn't that they were tame, then. He wondered if it was just him, the animals, or something else entirely.

"Oh - well, I don't know why they're doing it either. My name is H- ...Eryndir", he told the two, hoping they didn't notice his near slip. Luckily they appeared too distracted by the animals still, and only nodded.

"Yes, I know. Father told us about you - Lord Elrond, I mean, he's our father. I'm Elrohir and this is my brother, Elladan", the left one told him.

Harry 'hmm'ed in thought. He could see the resemblance. They both had the same grey eyes and the dark hair as Lord Elrond, and the same regal features most elves seemed to possess. They looked really similar to each other, too. He wasn't sure he could tell them apart without the help of some identifying feature. Even their voices were alike.

"Were you looking for me or something?" he asked them, making an inviting gesture and patting a spot free of animals near him.

"Yes - Father mentioned that you were not in your rooms and Glory and Gory were looking for you, so we thought we would help. Someone said you were walking around in your nightwear and I wanted to see that", Elrohir said, sitting down and stretching to touch the head of the fawn still asleep in Harry's lap. He aborted the gesture and yelped when Elladan smacked him on the head, though.

"Sorry about him, 'Rohir spends too much time around Men - we hunt orcs with them quite often. I'm sure you weren't really walking around in a nightgown", Elladan apologized to Harry in his brother's stead.

"Oh, it's okay - I really was. Mereniel was real mad when she realized. I think Lagorind is still regretting it, or at least his ears are", the elfling grinned at the twins.

"See! I told you they said so", Elrohir pouted at his brother, making Harry laugh. These two were the most laid back elves he had met so far, and he liked them already. Maybe he wouldn't be the odd one out because of the way he spoke, after all.

"How did you get all these animals to come so close, anyway?" Elladan asked Harry, ignoring his brother.

"I don't know, really. They just.. were there before I realized. Maybe they're hungry", Harry suggested. The two other elves looked doubtful. Yeah, he didn't think so either.

"Sure. Well, in any case, we should probably get you back to Father. It's almost dinner time and Mereniel would probably kill us if we let you go to dinner in those clothes", Elladan noted.

"Why? What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Harry asked, fingering the fabrics quite desperately. Elladan and Elrohir looked at him, their faces blank.

"You're kidding, right?" Elrohir asked him.

"Um, no? Please tell me you are, though. I don't want to even mention Mereniel and clothes in the same sentence!" Harry pleaded at them, shivering at the memory.

"Well, it might be a good thing. You obviously have a thing or two to learn about clothes and fashion, my dear elfling", Elrohir told him, patting his head and making the bird sitting on it peck his fingers for his efforts. Harry was sadistically gleeful when the other elf yanked his hand back, yelping. Served him right.

"It's not my fault. I don't even have any clothes", he told them, scowling. Even in his real world, he'd mostly had the hospital stuff and some odd shirt or trousers his mother had brought him. Not that he'd gotten to wear them more than once or twice anyway.

"Of course you have clothes", Elladan said, a frown on his face. "All the clothes in your room belong to you."

"Really?" Harry asked. He was surprised. He'd thought the clothes were someone's hand me downs or borrowed from someone in a hurry. Sure they fit really well and appeared unused, but... Why would they give him clothes? They couldn't have even known whether he'd be staying, then. He'd been practically a stranger. A child, yes, but still a stranger, possibly even a dangerous one! Why were they being so nice to him?

Elladan and Elrohir shared a look between them that Harry didn't notice, lost in his thoughts as he was. He was pulled out of them when a hand appeared in front of his face. He glanced up and realized the twins had stood at some point, and were looking at him expectantly.

"What?" he asked, blinking at them.

"We should start walking back. You might not know it, but you've managed to get quite far from home - we are a good half an hour walk from there", Elladan explained, still holding out his hand, waiting for him to take it.

Harry realized he must've walked in circles for quite a while if that was true, but was thankful for it. He'd hate to have to walk back for as long as it had taken him to get where he was now. He woke up the animals sitting or leaning on him, pet the fawn and the squirrels for a little while, gave the bird on his head a stroke along its beak and allowed Elladan to pull him up. The bird refused to leave his hair, though, making the two older elves chuckle at the sight. He scowled at them once more. They laughed outright when Harry had to abandon his shoes to the bug infestation, but reduced it down to sniggering after the elfling gave them his impression of a patented Snape glare.

The animals stayed where they were, watching the three elves leave as Harry waved his zoo goodbye, eliciting a few joking jabs from the twins. They only left once the elves were in sight no longer, wandering back to where ever it was they had come from.

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End of Chapter 3

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**AN**: Anyone else have the problem of reading "oc" as "orc" sometimes? I had to do a double take for some of your reviews when they didn't make sense - such as saying "I like the orcs". Hmm.

Did anyone realize Harry was walking around in nightwear, btw? Probably not since I didn't make it obvious. Good thing Mereniel got her act together and properly chastised Lagorind for it. In their defence, they're still rather distracted by the whole elfling-thing. In my defence - I don't have one, actually. I'm just scatterbrained like that. This is why I need a beta, more than anything else... Someone should point out my slips and omissions~!

On a different note, as I mentioned before, I'm only following general timelines when writing this. I'm not sure of the exact date for most events, so if they happened some other month or day, just assume that this is an AU so things are slightly off - or something.

And Harry finally meets a whole bunch of real characters. Glorfindel, Erestor and the twins are all introduced! Does anyone else feel sorry for Erestor?

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**Here be Responds to the Reviews.**

**Basia Orci**, **MusicRocker**, **Angel-Hime-Chan**, **Celestialuna, brightsun89, smiley, the slashier the better**: Thank you very much (again, to some)!

**Halimede**: I hope I set your fears to rest in the PM, but indeed, there won't be any awakenings to find out it was a dream, here. Elrond is known for his healing skills and Harry was quite sick (though an elf wouldn't die of it) when Lagorind found him - plus Lagorind is, in fact, a Rivendell elf. And those elven horses sure can run! Thank you for reviewing once more, I hope you continue to enjoy this story regardless of its faults~

**Laura-shi**: I'm reliever you liked the OCs, not many commented on them. Yup, the books and the movies mention some elves but the amount of names given is surprisingly low, especially for the currently-alive specimens. Lagorind seemed like Glorfindel? I don't know whether to be happy or sad about that, though I suppose they share similar traits appearance wise - then again, many elves do. I'm glad you like the story, hopefully you liked this chapter as well!

**tamzingrace**: I laughed at your comment for about 10 minutes - thank you! You're right, though, shouldn't have wasted pop corn like that...

**Yana5**: I think he'd object to being called cute, but I'll take the compliments for him. We will see more of the "other realm" soon enough, perhaps not in the next chapter but at the very least in the one after that, so your question should be answered then~

**HikariAi**: I rarely like my own writing, but for once I felt satisfied with the way the switches managed to tell the story. I'm glad you liked it as well!

**cheekysorcerer**: As mentioned above, I'm happy people liked that part. Hopefully I won't have to bring too many OCs into this, but the elves known by name are so few! Perhaps you can imagine they're the elves from the movies and the books that just weren't given any names? There are plenty who fit the descriptions. No pairing decision have been made yet, I'm still lost as to that. Thanks for the review!

**Daku Mauji**: Like I told Yana5, Harry will indeed be seen in the other world soon enough. I hope this will answer all or at least most of the questions people have about the nature of Harry's existence in both places. Thank you for leaving a review!

**Abbyforth**: Something unusual, hmm? Well, Legolas isn't at the top of the list right now, mostly because I think he's overdone as well. Though that's kind of unfair on the poor elf, it's not his fault he's so popular, eh? I like to think I know English well enough, even if it isn't my first tongue - I've read quite a lot of books in it and all. Thanks for the compliments and the review!

**popupman**: Is there a story behind the name? Anyway, you're the first to suggest Lagorind for the pairing - it makes me kind of happy, since that makes it seem like he's accepted by the readers. I'm not sure what the pairing will be, yet, but I'll consider Gory as well - though it'll mostly depend on how their relationship develops. For now, it's likely he'll be the big brother you envisioned. Aragorn and Boromir both have some disadvantages to being chosen, mostly the whole human thing. And Aragorn is quite firmly Arwen's, I'd hate to break that pair up... Oh well, we'll just have to wait and see. Thank you for the review!

**Fire Dolphin**: Yes, I hope so too. I suppose his father probably had some reasons for acting as he did - doesn't make it right, though. Thanks for reviewing!

**Pink Feline**: I guess it could be a bit weird if he just suddenly turned into an elf - though I swear there are actually reasons behind it. Not that there usually aren't. Ah, well. And yes, OCs are often a rather sticky subject. I'm not overly fond of them in general myself, but in this case I think they're necessary considering the circumstances. I imagine their role will get lesser in time, especially after Harry gets to know the actual characters and grows older. I'm afraid you'll have to put up with them for a while still, though. Thank you for the review!

**FireFox Vixen**: Thank you! I'm glad you like the OCs, though they haven't yet had much time to become "real". Thanks for the review, as well~

**AnimeIceFox**: Elfling Harry is nice to read, indeed. And I think the next or the one after that chapter will reveal Harry's current situation, including the ill-or-not question, so just look forward to it. And you're the only one who realized he told Laggy his age! I'm glad, because that was something I rather shortly used in this chapter. Harry really should watch his mouth more closely, but sometimes he just doesn't think. Thank you for reviewing, I'm happy that you like the story so far!

Special thanks to all of you who made the time to review once again (It's nice to know how you feel about the new chapters)!

For those of you who added this story to their alerts or favourited, thank you as well - but reviews are my inspiration, so if you can gather the energy to write, please leave some. They always make me in the mood for writing, be it one word or several sentences.


	5. Chapter 4

**AN**: Thank you for the many reviews again. This chapter took a while to write, and the next one will take even more so - the first three weeks of December are full of deadlines for me, most of them for monstrous essays of 20 or so pages. Ugh. Anyways, that means I can't write as much as usual (which isn't that much to begin with), but hopefully I'll be able to make up for it once Christmas holidays start. We get a whole month to ourselves! I love that side of university studies. Oh, sorry for babbling - on to the story, hope you enjoy it!

...And someone get this Wolf Whistling Song out of my head.

**Summary**: Harry was always a sickly child, but it all came crashing down with one word: Leukemia. Trapped inside a hospital since his 14th birthday, one night and one charm would change it all...

**Warnings**: AU, Harry's run-off mouth/mind, Future Slash and (far-off future) Mature content.

**Disclaimer**: The Venus Flytrap had a very short but fulfilling life, before Ginny's ghostly karma made it choke on popcorn. Plant Heaven welcomed the new addition with open petals.

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**Memory of Tomorrow - Chapter 4**

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Harry missed having his sketchbook. Sitting at dinner, watching all the splendor around him, the aristocratic elves and the massive feast - and they had one everyday! - he had never wanted to hold a pen and paper more than right then. He didn't know if there were drawing supplies available in this world, but since they had books and the rooms were works of art themselves, he suspected they did - perhaps he could ask Lord Elrond or Mereniel to find some for him.

"You should eat more, Eryndir, you are thin as a stick", Elladan whispered to him from his right side, disturbing his thoughts. Elrohir on his twin's right nodded his agreement, smuggling a piece of pickled fruit to Harry's plate. The elfling scowled at the new addition, poking it with his fork.

It wasn't that he wasn't hungry, or that he didn't like the food. He was just so used to his stomach rebelling against food of any kind that the thought of eating, by now, made him slightly nauseous all by itself. He suspected it would take a while for him to get used to eating properly again. The twins were asking the impossible, anyway. Hadn't he managed a whole plate of fruits already? What did they want, to stuff him like a pig? Harry snorted at the mental image of a Harry-pig with green eyes and black hair, tied over a happily blazing fire. He had pretty much come to the conclusion that elves were all vegetarians, so they probably weren't going to fatten him up to eat him for snack.

"I see the twins have decided to adopt you", Lagorind grinned at him from his left. "It is a good thing, since they have been growing discontent with the lack of activity as of late. Perhaps now they will have something else to occupy their minds."

Harry looked at Lagorind with a horrified expression on his face.

"You'd dump me to their mercy? You're crueler than you look, Lagorind", he complained, giving the peach on his plate a particularly vicious poke.

"Whatever did the poor fruit do to you, child?" an amused voice asked from the left side of Lagorind. Harry peered around the elf and took in the tall figure sitting there. He wasn't an elf, that much was clear - he was a lot more muscled, scruffier and rougher than them, and obviously missing the telltale pointed ears. This must be the elusive Estel, then. He looked strong, and even with the lack of elvish features managed to convey an aristocratic air. Perhaps spending enough time with the elves did that to you. Maybe Harry would manage it some day, himself.

"I have a name, you know. H- ..Eryndir. You could use it", he informed the man. The man laughed quietly, a sort of gruff, chuckling sound that Harry found himself liking instantly.

"And I'm Estel. Lagorind has told me a lot about you - I swear, not a minute passes without him mentioning your name. Just earlier he forgot his sword, so intent he was on the story of your meeting with Lord Elrond", Estel told him. Lagorind choked on his mouthful of food and started protesting wildly, but his cheeks were tinged a telling pink, leaving no doubt of the truthfulness of the tale. Harry grinned wildly.

"It is no wonder - an elfling, of all things! We are all overjoyed by the appearance of young Eryndir", Mereniel came to save the poor man from behind them. Harry turned his head to look at the she-elf, a question in his eyes.

"I thought you looked like you were finished, Eryndir. We should head to your rooms, I am sure the day has been long and you would like to rest. You are still recovering, after all", Mereniel smiled at him but aimed a warning glare at the other elves with the last note. They all shared a sheepish glance before wishing Harry good night and turning back to their foods. Harry couldn't help but notice the several disappointed looks that followed the two as they left the dining hall and made a note to never be found alone. He didn't fancy being smothered to death by overly eager creatures, no matter how fair and majestic they were.

When they reached Harry's current dwellings, Mereniel insisted on helping him get changed into his nightwear - it was a new, white robe instead of the one from the morning - and combing his long hair. There was a torch lighting the room with soft, golden glow, and Harry found himself relaxing with the soothing feel of the comb brushing through his long, black strands. He felt like purring and curling up to sleep right there in the chair.

"You have very nice hair, Eryndir", Mereniel murmured to him, twirling a loose strand near his ear in a thoughtful fashion. "It is as black as Lady Arwen's, but with a green shade... I wonder where you get that from. I have never heard of an elf with green tinged hair, before."

Harry paused in the middle of his yawn. It really was no use asking him. He hadn't even had the hair before coming to this place, so how would he know where the green came from. Though hearing Mereniel comment on it, it seemed to be yet another thing to set him apart in here. It made him wonder if he wasn't a full elf. Creature inheritances weren't that uncommon, so perhaps he was only part - but being a part human wouldn't explain the green either, so maybe that wasn't it. Come to think of it, would his new body suffer the same illness he had in his world? If it was made with the same genetics, it might. He wasn't sure where the cancer had come from, but it must've been in his body for a while, and probably helped along by his dna, somehow. He didn't want to get sick. Would the immortality Lagorind had mentioned protect him from it? Was he even immortal if he wasn't a real elf?

Harry sighed, drawing Mereniel's attention from her own thoughts and making her frown.

"What is the matter, Eryndir?" she asked worriedly, laying the comb down on the nightstand and straightening the collar of his night gown.

"Nothing, I'm just tired I guess", Harry offered quickly, attempting a smile. Mereniel didn't look overly convinced but allowed him to distract her with getting the elfling in the bed and properly bundled in the lush blankets.

"Good night, Eryndir", Mereniel whispered after she deemed everything to her satisfaction, standing at the doorway.

"Good night, Mereniel", Harry whispered back, watching the woman extinguish the torch and close the door, her soft footsteps fading away down the stone corridor. The elfling lay in the silence of the room for a long while, watching the sky outside, unable to sleep. He finally drifted off to the gentle caress of the wind reaching for him through the open balcony. He dreamed of his faraway home and family, crying near his empty hospital bed.

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Harry came back to the real world with the realization his eyes were already open and the sun was much too bright for such ungodly hours. No matter he didn't know what the hour was, it was always too early for waking up to sun induced blindness. He sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes and wondering how he had managed to sleep with them open. He didn't think it was a habit of his, or at least no one had ever told him if it was. He was pretty sure Charlus would have made fun of the fact, though, so maybe it was a new occurrence. It didn't really matter anyway.

Yawning widely, Harry stretched and was pleased to note that the small aches from yesterday were completely gone. He idly wondered if his body would revert back when he found his way to his own world, then realized it was better not to think of it. If he he thought about it too long, he might decide he didn't want to go back - being so healthy was great after all the time spent ill and in a hospital.

As he got up to brush his hair, he wondered if Mereniel would come by soon to make sure he got dressed 'properly', since apparently he couldn't be trusted with his own clothes. He didn't have any idea what time it was though. For all he knew, it could've been 8 in the morning or three in the evening. Someone would've woken him up before that, though - right?

A knock on the door stopped his worrying and he called out a short 'Enter' while continuing the battle with his uncooperative hair. Really, for all he loved the thing, it was way too unruly and got tangled so easily... Though it still beat the option of not having any.

"Good morning, Eryndir", two cheerful voices greeted him in duet from the doorway. Harry felt like groaning. Even though the twins were fun and good company, he didn't feel like putting up with them so soon after waking up, especially when his brain wasn't working to its full capacity yet. Lagorind really should've watched his words more carefully. Self fulfilling prophecies were bitches.

"Morning", he answered the twins reluctantly when it became clear they were content to wait until he gave up the pretence of not seeing them. He got twin beaming smiles in return.

"Mereniel sent us to make sure you got dressed in something that wouldn't make a dwarf cry in horror", Elrohir told him helpfully. His only response was a slow blink and a tilt of head from the elfling. While they were having a battle of wits full with a staring contest, Elladan had dug into Harry's wardrobe and emerged with a set of clothes he lay on the bed.

"There, these should do. Now get dressed, Eryndir, we are taking you out", Elladan commanded, making Harry scoff at him before grudgingly reaching for the clothes laid out for him. He paused when the twins just stood there staring at him, making no move to leave. Harry furrowed his brow, looking pointedly between the two elves and the door. Nothing happened.

"For Merlin's sake!" Harry finally exploded. "Do elves have no sense of privacy? I'm asking you to leave while I get dressed!" He got identical deadpan looks for his troubles.

"Merlin?" Elrohir asked, while Elladan pointed out the obvious: "You are an elf too, you know."

"Yes, I'm an elf, and apparently the only one who respects the privacy of others!" Harry huffed out, ignoring Elrohir's question.

"Fine, fine, we're going", Elrohir told him raising his hands up in surrender. "No need to get so worked up over it, little elfling!"

Harry didn't answer and merely glared at them until they closed the door behind them, leaving him in his blessed peace and quiet. He sighed. If he was already so exhausted after five minutes of dealing with the twins, the day wasn't promising to turn out as well as it had started.

"Are you done yet?" a voice suddenly asked, Elrohir's face peeking at Harry from behind the door. He was answered by a shoe hitting him in the face and the enraged yelp from the elfling occupying the room.

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The twins' idea of taking him out included horses and hours of riding. The two older elves were astounded when Harry told them he had never ridden a horse in his life, and had made it their mission to make him a natural born rider within a day. Harry was tempted to tell them how impossible that was but refrained simply because riding was actually quite fun, and the horses were really nice. They seemed to understand him without any gestures or words, going where he wanted the way he wanted before he even got to direct them.

"It's unfair! It took me weeks to get my horse to listen to me properly, and here you come and they act like you were their mother!" Elrohir complained, sulking on the back of his white stallion.

"Now, 'Rohir, it's not Eryndir's fault if he is a better rider than you", Elladan informed his brother cheerfully from the sidelines. He had opted to stay on the ground and make sure there were no accidents. Elrohir huffed irritably but went back to instructing Harry on the proper way of holding the reins, not that his mare seemed to actually need them.

At the end of their impromptu lesson, which had lasted quite long since the sun was starting to set by the time the twins deemed Harry decent enough a rider, the elfling climbed off his horse aching and sweaty but happier than he could ever remember being. Even if Elrohir laughed at the way his legs bent or he had to pat the horse goodbye and leave it in the hands of another elf (who kept stealing glances at him), Harry ignored this all with good cheer and chattered happily to the two, pleased elves as they headed to the private quarters for freshening up before dinner.

Harry was listening to the twins argue about the benefits of using a saddle or not when he faltered slightly as something at the edge of his mind tried to warn him. Even so, the Pull came as a complete surprise. Harry had barely enough mind left to recognize the feeling from his days of being sick, all of his willpower focused on fighting off the insistent tugging. He dimly realized he had stopped walking, and from the confused and apprehensive looks on his two companions' faces figured his expression must've been interesting, but didn't spare much attention to those details. The Pull was persistent and strong and he knew he had lost the fight, even before he felt his legs give out under him, one of the twins catching him as he fell. He saw the frightened face of Elladan and heard the elf's voice shouting something even as his vision wavered and he slipped into the familiar darkness.

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"Harry!"

A voice was calling his name. His real name. Harry thought this odd, for some reason, though he couldn't really say why. His mind was broken, scattered like fragments of glass across the mental path the Pull had dragged him along. His eyes were heavy and his thoughts slow, disoriented. His body felt like lead, his limbs useless objects he couldn't figure out enough to move them. The scent of illness hung over him like a storm cloud, ready to strike at him the moment he opened his eyes and got his panting breathing under control.

"Harry! Open your eyes!"

The voice calling him was relentless and Harry found himself grudgingly obeying it. He slowly struggled his eyes open half way, relieved at the dim lighting in the room. The white ceiling and walls were like a slap against his face, filling him with unexplainable panic as his mind fought to reorientate itself. Why was it so odd that he was inside a hospital, for that was obviously where the room was - that specific white shade was only found in health institutions like this one. Why did it feel like he shouldn't be here?

"Harry! You're awake - oh Merlin, we've been so worried", a female voice cried out as a weight suddenly settled next to him, dipping the surface he was on. A gloved hand reached to his face, stroking his cheek.

"W-" was all Harry managed to croak out, his voice cracking and ending in furious coughs. He wasn't sure what he would've said anyway - who, where, why, water, or maybe something else entirely.

"Wait a second, dear, I'll get you some water", the voice told him, and the weight on the mattress disappeared. It was soon replaced and a glass filled with cool substance appeared in front of his face, hands helping him keep his head up long enough to drink some of it.

"What happened?" Harry rasped in question, trying to open his eyes fully. The hands eased his head back down and the glass of water was placed on a nearby table with a soft clink.

"You've been very sick - the healer firecalled us last night. They weren't sure if you'd make it for a while. You're in isolation again, dear. You've been unconscious for a day", the voice - his mother, he realized - answered.

"A day...?" Harry asked, furrowing his brows in confusion. There was something wrong with that. Something wrong with this whole situation. What was...

The memories flooded his mind suddenly, as if someone had cast a _reparo_ on the fragmented thoughts scattered around his head. The forest, the charm, the spider, Lagorind, Mereniel, Lord Elrond, the elves, the twins, the horse riding, the Pull...

"Why am I here?" he blurted out, finding the strength to force his eyes open in his desperation. Oh gods. He had been looking for a way back, but not like this - never like this. He was sick again, it was easy to tell. He struggled his right hand up from the bed, reaching for his head to confirm what he already knew - no hair. Only the fabric of the hat he used to cover the loss. Harry felt like sobbing aloud. What would the elves think? He remembered the panicked looks on the twins' faces. Was he dead in there? Had the place even existed? Had it all been just some trick of his ill mind, a hallucination of some kind? But no - he knew the difference between reality and dreams by now. The world had been too real, too strong, too _there_. There was no way to imagine all the details, all the scents, all the sensations. It had been real. It had to be real.

"What do you mean, sweetie?" his Mother asked, still sitting on his bed, stroking his cheek. She looked worried and confused by his question.

"I..." Harry floundered for something to say, to explain. What could he tell her? If he told of the other world, the elves, they would think him mad. Lilyanne and even Charlus might have believed him, but this was his mother. No matter how much he loved her, she was much too sensible, much too realistic to even consider the possibility her son was telling the truth, not recounting a dream or turning a raving lunatic on her.

"I'll go tell James and the kids that you're awake", Lily told him suddenly, apparently content with his non-answer. Maybe she was still out of it with his sudden awakening.

Harry watched his mother stride out of the room and turned to look at the room he was in. It was his usual room in the isolation ward - the window showed the sky and nothing else, since it was located higher, on the 7th floor, rather than the 3rd floor of his other room. He wondered what they had told Lilyanne and Charlus - had they been told he had almost died? Probably not. Even his father wouldn't do that. At least he hoped so.

"Lily told us you're awake", a quiet male voice spoke from the door. Harry turned to look at his father. James was inspecting the room, avoiding looking at his own son. Harry didn't know whether to laugh or cry. It was always like this with his father. He would come to visit, look uncomfortable, try to exchange a few words, then decide he had done his duty as a father and leave. He always looked relieved when he left.

"Nice to see you too, father", Harry told the man.

Charlus and Lilyanne sprinted into the room past James' form, both jumping on the bed and hugging their brother fiercely. They were both wearing face masks charmed to sterilize their breath and gloves with similar spellwork on them.

"Mum said you were sick", Lilyanne told Harry, sniffling slightly.

"I was, but I'm all better now - see?" he told his little sister, ruffling his hair and smiling more happily than he felt.

"The doctors were whispering", Charlus informed him quietly, trying to keep his voice low enough that Lilyanne wouldn't hear. "They said you might.."

Harry shook his head, stopping his brother from continuing. He smiled more genuinely this time and ruffled his brother's hair as well - he hadn't done that in a long while.

"I'm just fine. The doctors are always exaggerating", he said. Charlus smiled a little shakily under his see-through mask and just hugged Harry once more before shifting to sit on the chair next to his bed. James still hadn't moved from the door.

"Harry, your eyes are weird", Lilyanne told the eldest brother suddenly, poking at his cheek. Harry blinked and looked at Charlus for clarification. The younger brother frowned and peered at his eyes for a moment before making a small sound of surprise.

"She's right - they do look kind of weird. They're somehow... greener than I remember. Kind of eerie, really", Charlus said.

"You wouldn't happen to have a mirror with you?" Harry asked, curious. Maybe something had followed him.

"No, I don't think so - Mum might have one, though. Hey! You made a necklace out of the charm I gave you! You didn't have to, it wasn't anything that special", Charlus exclaimed. Harry started and his hand flew to his chest as if it had a mind of its own, discovering the wooden block resting there, tied with a soft silk thread. He didn't even try to stop the wide smile that broke out on his face. The accessory was proof of the world he had just left behind. It _had_ existed! He had really been there, met all those elves, been healthy and happy for the first time in his life. It hadn't been a dream!

"Why're you smiling, 'Ry?" Lilyanne asked, giggling herself at seeing her brother so happy.

"Nothing, squirt. Absolutely nothing", Harry laughed, hugging his sister close to him and prompting Charlus to join in, forming a chuckling and squirming group hug bundle on the bed, which was the scene Lily walked back to with the healers.

"Well, you certainly seem to be feeling much better", the healer, an old, balding man Harry had never liked drawled, writing something down on his notepad. "Since the emergency is over, we'll have to ask you to leave Mrs. and Mr. Potter, the visiting hours are long past. Young Mr. Potter will be just fine now."

Harry noted his mother didn't look at all happy with this but James was nodding and agreeing with the other man, shaking his hand and offering his thanks. Sighing, Lily turned back to Harry's bed, smiling at her eldest son.

"You heard what the healer said, Harry. I'll come visit you with Lilyanne and Charlus tomorrow - I'm sure Father will try to come soon, too", his mother told him. Harry snorted quietly, but only Charlus heard. The younger child offered him a sympathetic glance, rising from the chair and giving him one last hug.

Lilyanne didn't want to go yet and it took Harry some serious convincing, bribing and tickling to get his little sister to let go of him long enough for their mother to pick her up. Even then Lily was forced to carry her all the way from the room, much to James' dismay. Their father only offered a gruff 'take care' before hurrying out himself, leaving Harry alone to his thoughts. And boy did he have a lot of them.

Even though the necklace was proof that the other world existed, it didn't give him any more clues as to what the place even was, or how he had gotten there. Obviously his bodies here and there were separate, otherwise his family would've been looking for a lost child, not worrying over a sick one. So what did that mean? Any form of magic was ruled out, since it didn't allow you to switch between bodies unless you were some freak ghost with the gift for possessing stuff, and even then it wouldn't work since the worlds were _somehow_ separate. Time travel wouldn't create a new body as far as he knew, though he could've been wrong. But even if it did, there was no way to travel that far in time.

In the end, Harry felt like he was left with even more questions than answers. At least he knew he wouldn't worry his family if he managed to find his way back to the elves - who were probably worried sick over him, right now. How did he get back there? Last time he had fallen asleep, he thought, so perhaps the key lay there. Except how many times in his life had he fallen asleep in his bed before and woken up just the same? Well, there was nothing lost trying, right?

With that thought, Harry settled down to try and get some sleep. Even if it didn't send him back to the elves, it'd at least take him away from the feel of illness and the white walls. Maybe he would dream of something nicer, like the forests near Imladris or going riding with the twins...

He fell asleep without even noticing the shift, and felt the Pull instantly tug him away.

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End Chapter 4

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**AN:** So, that's the latest chapter. This one was an annoying piece of work, kept bugging me and refused to be written. It didn't help that ideas for a MushishiHP x-over and a Twelve Kingdoms x HP x-over are bouncing around in my head, persistently vying for attention. I haven't started writing either of them, for the simple reason that I don't have the time or attention to spare.

As mentioned before, don't expect the next chapter for a while - I'll be busy with deadlines from now until Christmas or so. Have to make/buy presents too... * sigh *

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**Answers to reviews went ahead of this sentence.**

**brightsun89, Daku Mauji, Katsy17, BAD HERO, yukino89**: Thank you!

**popupman**: That's... a rather ominous history. And kind of impressive. I know next to nothing about programming, but I imagine it's an achievement to do something like that, so young. Congratulations? Not too sure if I should say that since technically it was a worm and all, but... Yeah, well done. I think Glorfindel is older than Elrond, by the way, though I'll have to check to make sure. Guess that's a negative vote for him from you. And no, Harry won't become a woman just because he's an elf - he's still a man, thank heavens. Thank you for the review, again!

**libsrevenge**: The twins are fun to write since they're not nearly as formal as all the rest. Glad that you liked them, thank you for reviewing!

**kura-wolfgoddess**: Forest friends... For some reason that made me laugh. Are the bugs included in it? I hope so, they're much too underappreciated, poor things. I feel a little sorry for Erestor too, he's not really all that bad - just a bit stuffy. Thanks for the review~

**Yana5**: No, he's not in a coma - as you probably realized from this chapter. Thank you for reviewing!

**calileane**: I'm glad you like the disclaimer, though it's a little odd to hear that, since it's not even part of the story. But thanks anyways! I think I've read some x-overs with Lily and James alive but there being magic before. Quite a few actually, but in different fandoms. Twilight for one. The charm had a lot to do with Harry's sudden trip, but it's not the real culprit. And Ginny happily chokes on pop corn whenever somebody takes their eyes off her - thank you for the review~

**Halimede**: There is something there - well done with the guesswork, once again. I'm glad your worries were laid to rest, since I don't intend to go with such a cruel trick on the readers. I'm writing this for you, after all, so that would be just silly. I believe Elrohir and Elladan had a short appearance in the movies, perhaps in the director's cut or something - don't remember too clearly. Thanks for reviewing again!

**Saharra Shadow**: Harry's zoo is a happy little family of its own. Not sure if they'll be appearing a lot, but I'm glad you liked them nevertheless. Thank you for leaving a review!

**To like**: Shakespeare, indeed. I have one quote of his I rather like, but I won't bother writing it here now. In Finland we don't get to know his works all that well before university level, so I've only ever read two of them, sad as that is (and both in my freetime). I don't believe myself to be uneducated, so I'll take your word for not implying that - thanks for the review, I'm happy that you like the characters!

**AnimeIceFox**: I didn't really think of that too much when writing the scene, but I guess you're right. Huh. A lot of stuff will happen, hopefully interesting enough to keep you happy. The twins will give Harry a nickname - in fact they already have, in their heads. It'll just take a little while for them to call Harry by it, since they'll have to have a good relationship with enough trust between all three of them before they do. Erestor is The Fake-Snape! Thank you for reviewing!

**Basia Orci**: Thanks. And as an (un)interesting little tidbit of information, I've used that image you're using right now as my msn avatar several times. It's so cute...

**Fire Dolphin**: Well, I don't see Harry wearing a blue and yellow dress anywhen soon (who came up with _that _colour combination!), but otherwise he's your helpful, everyday Snow White. I don't think Elrond and Glory will get to see the whole zoo, but the twins will probably entertain them with the stories for years to come. Thanks for the review!

**tamzingrace**: You're the second to give me the image of Harry in a hideous yellow and blue dress, with a bow and dreadful hairdo... Not that I have anything against Disney or Snow White, since I love both, but still... Creepy. The twins will certainly do their best to drag him into trouble. And my hand's all better- didn't even leave a scar. Thanks for asking, though! And I have a grudge against Venys Flytraps, one tried to eat me once. Thank you for reviewing again!

(mysterious empty space): Mereniel is the name - but indeed, it slipped her mind mostly because it slipped mine. To give you an idea of my poor memory and short attention span, I can never remember my own age, and sometimes it takes me until my birthday to realize it is, in fact, my birthday. Though maybe that's just avoidance of the aging issue. I sure started early in that case. I'm glad you liked the zoo and thank you for the review!

**Laura-Shi**: Erestor got the short end of the stick, but someone has to. The elves from other settlements will come into picture with some time. Some of them will visit Rivendell, others he'll be meeting elsewhere, but that won't be for a while yet. Haldir will at least make an appearance in this fic, so rest assured on that front. Thank you for reviewing once more!

**Kayls Cullen**: The story is slow going atm, but there will be time skips in the future. I doubt anyone would want to read the next fifty or so years in detail, anyway. Still not sure of the pairing, but Legolas is in consideration. There's not enough love for the twins~ Thanks for the review!

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**I'll try to update before christmas, at least, but I'm not promising anything. Until next chapter~!**


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